SI 


vi^^r^ 


LIBRARY 


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I 


i 


MBHARY. 

ANCIEliT  HJeifiOKJl. 


00MPRI3I>'G    A    GE>-ERAL    VIEW    OF    THE    PRINCIPAI, 

EVENTS  AND  JERAS  IN  CIVIL  HISTORY,  FROM 

THE  CREATION  OF  THE  WORLD  TILL 

THE  AUGUSTAN  AGE. 


TOGETHER   WITH 


AN  ALLEGORY 


GENIUS  AND  TASTE, 

BOUNDED  TN  THE  HISTORY  OF  ANCIENT  ^LITERATURE, 


BY  SAMUEL  WHELPLEY,  A.  M. 

Member  of  the  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  of  New-York. 


J^EW-YORK. 

I'rUitad  ana  Published  by  Van  Winkle  &  Wilej 


BE  IT  REMEMBERED,  that  on  the  twenty- third  day  of 
November,  in  the  fortieth  year  of  the  IndepeDdence  of  the 
United  States  of  America,  Van  Winkle  &  Wiley,  of  the  said  dis- 
trict, have  deposited  in  this  office  the  title  of  a  book,  the  right 
whereof  they  claim  as  proprietors,  in  the  words  following,  to  wit: 

"  Lectures  on  Ancient  History,  comprising  a  General  View  of  the 
«»  Principal  Events  and  ^ras  in  civil  history,  from  the  creation  of 
"  the  World  till  the  Augustan  Age.  Together  with  an  Allegory,  on 
*'  Geniup  and  Taste,  founded  in  the  History  of  Ancient  Literature. 
"  By  Samuel  Whelpley,  A.  M.  Membero/  the  Literary  and  Philo- 
'••  sophical  Society  of  New  York." 

Is  CONFORMITY  to  the  act  of  Congress  of  the  United  States,  en- 
titled, "  An  act  for  the  encouragement  of  learning,  by  securing 
*'  the  copies  of  maps,  charts,  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  pro- 
•'  prietors  of  such  copies,  during  the  times  therein  mentioned;" 
and  also,  to  an  act  entitled,  "  An  act,  supplementary  to  an  net, 
"  entitled,  an  act  for  the  encouragement  of  learning,  by  securing 
"  the  copies  of  maps,  charts,  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprie- 
"  tors  of  such  copies,  during  the  times  therein  mentioned,  and  ex- 
"  tending  the  benefits  thereof  to  the  arts  of  designing,  engraving, 
"  and  etching  historical  and  other  prints." 

THERON  RUDD, 
Clerk  of  the  Southern  District  of  New- York, 


DEDICATION. 

TO  THE  REV.  TIMOTHY  DWIGHT,  D;>^ 

President  of  Yale  ColUge,  S^e.  Sfc.  kc. 


Reverend  Sir, 

When  you  recognise  in  these  pages  the 
winter  evening's  amusements  of  a  society  of 
young  ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  am  persuaded 
that  your  benignant  feelings  towards  that 
numerous,  important,  and  interesting  class, 
for  whose  formation  and  improvement  in 
every  thing  useful  and  ornamental,  your 
labours  have  been  so  illustriously  distin- 
guished, will  not  only  dictate  a  cordial  ap- 
probation of  amusements  so  innocent,  where 
time  is  not  past  away  at  the  expense  of 
morals,  and  where  a  taste  is  imbibed  for  the 
refined  and  noble  pleasures  of  the  under- 
standing, but  will  feel  a  rising  desire  that 
the  American  youth,  of  both  sexes,  woijld 
oftener  associate  for  similar  purposes. 


205 


-t} 


•ft* 


\ 

.^  DEIFICATION. 

Few  branclK^'  of  knowledge  are  more  im- 
portant than-iat  of  history;  and,  perhaps, 
after  relisi"^'  ^here  is  none  that  unites  more 
useful  ip»-ruction  with  more  pleasui-e  ;  that 
affords -'^'^^^^  alike  in  all  professional  pur- 
suit«  whether  liberal  or  mechanical ;   that 
^jtjs  elevation,  vigour,  practical  knowledge, 
Hid  real  philosophy,  to  every  mind.     If,  in- 
deed, there  can  be  a  condition  conceived  of, 
in  which  absolute  poverty  of  mnid  would  be 
desirable,  from  persons  in  that  condition  let 
history  be  withheld. 

It  may  be  asked  whether  historical  know- 
ledge will  enable  a  man  to  make  a  better 
shoe,  or  turn  over  more  exactly  the  clods  of 
his  fallow.  Perhaps  it  is  a  query  of  deeper 
import  and  more  difficult  solution,  whether 
the  labouring  classes  have  any  time  for  read- 
ing ;  or,  if  they  have,  whether  it  would  not 
promote  a  taste  dangerous  to  industry. 
These  inquiries  neither  savour  of  a  deep 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  nor  of  the  gene- 
ral texture  of  society  in  our  own  country. 
It  would  be  as  philosophical  to  ask,  whether 
a  summer''s  day  has  not  too  much  light,  or 
whether  a  watchmaker  may  not  be  too  sharp- 
sighted.  If  an  increase  of  knowledge  dis- 
pose  a  mechanic,  or  labourer,  to  abandon 


DEDICATION.  Y 

his  class,  it  must  be  generally  owing  to  the 
stupidity,  ignorance,  and  consequent  degra- 
dation of  that  class  to  which  his  occupation 
confines  him.  There  are  few  arts  or  sci- 
ences incapable  of  improvement,  as  there 
are  few  occupations  which  would  not  appear 
distinguished  and  honourable,  if  honour  and 
distinction  attached  themselves  to  the  per- 
sons by  whom  those  arts  and  occupations 
are  carried  on.  By  being  appointed  overseer 
of  the  common  sewers  of  Athens,  Themisto- 
cles  lost  none  of  that  honour  and  distinction 
attached  to  his  name. 

If  the  manual  arts  and  occupations  are 
not  necessarily  founded  in  ignorance,  and 
do  not,  by  their  nature,  or  by  some  unknown 
destiny,  condemn  mankind  to  utter  darkness 
and  degradation  of  mind,  there  are  found  in 
various  books,  and  in  none  more  than  his- 
tory, the  best  incentives  to  improvement 
and  elevation  of  mind.  Nothing  is  more 
evident  than  that  all  men  cannot  be  readers, 
in  the  more  extensive  sense  of  the  phrase ; 
yet,  it  is  equally  certain,  that  the  plea  of 
wanting  time  is  but  an  apology  for  wanting 
taste.  Let  any  labouring  man  keep  an  ac- 
count current  of  his  twenty-four  hours,  and 
he  will  see  several  hours  of  it  offered  in 
1* 


DEDICATION. 


sacrifice  to  a  more  powerful  demon  than 
Jaggernaut — (o  listless,  lifeless,  all-devour- 
ing stupidity.  Jaggernaut  reigns  in  India, 
but  stupidity,  or  as,  by  a  little  variation, 
it  may  be  called,  idleness,  inaction,  ease, 
thoughtlessness,  ennui,  inattention,  reigns 
over  the  globe,  and  devours  a  great  portion 
of  human  life.  Many  vices  prompt  to  ac- 
tion, and  ^re  arduous ;  thisf  says  Addison, 
assails  us  at  all  hours,  attacks  all  classes, 
even  the  most  active  and  energetic,  and 
often  with  success,  because  to  obey  it  is  to 
do  nothing :  it  is  the  brother  of  indecision, 
and  often  ends  in  error  and  dissipation. 

The  sway  of  this  formidable  tyrant  is 
peculiarly  facilitated  over  those  orders  of  peo- 
ple where  poverty  chills  emulation,  in  whose 
minds  a  cheerless  prospect  is  scarcely  illu- 
minated by  a  star  of  hope,  whose  daily 
labours  seem  to  admit  of  no  alternation  but 
that  of  rest,  and  in  whom  the  first  rudiments 
of  taste  have  suffered  too  severely  to  admit  of 
any  medium  between  rude  and  boisterous 
amusement,  and  silent  inactivity  and  slum- 
ber. 

The  state  of  society  at  any  given  period 
seems  to  present  adamantine  barriers  to  the 
improvement  of  this  class  of  people.      It 


DEDICATION. 


cannot,  however,  have  escaped  the  notice 
of  your  pervading  and  benevolent  mind, 
Reverend  Sir,  that  the  immense  accumula- 
tion of  this  unhappy  class,  nay,  the  very 
existence  of  such  a  class,  must  be,  in  a  great 
measure,  chargeable  to  the  government  of  a 
country,  the  selfish  and  cruel  temper,  spirit, 
and  maxims  of  a  people,  or  the  resistless 
force  of  unpropitious  habits,  arising  from 
those  two  sources  combined.  I  rejoice  to 
say  that  our  own  happy  country  has  set  a 
better  example  to  the  world,  in  this  respect, 
than  almost  any  nation.  Yet  how  far,  alas  ! 
are  we  from  a  complete  remedy  ?  The 
Hebrews,  by  divine  direction,  and  after  them 
the  Lacedemonians,  endeavoured  to  set  up 
barriers  against  the  fatal  and  deteriorating 
influence  of  unequal  wealth ;  and  the  free 
and  magnanimous  spirit  of  Rome  often  at- 
tempted,  but  never  could  achieve  it. 

You,  Reverend  Sir,  have  the  happiness  to 
live  in  a  state  where  the  painful  sight  of 
poverty  and  ignorance  is  less  frequent  than 
in  any  other  part  of  this  country — perhaps, 
of  the  v/orld  ;  whilst  you  enjoy  the  conscious 
felicity  of  being  instrumental,  w^ith  others, 
in  establishing  and  promoting  an  order  of 
things,  so  honourable  to  human  nature— the 


iriii  DEDICATION. 

grateful  remembrance  of  which,  it  will  be  the 
pleasm-e  and  pride  of  the  historian  to  trans- 
mit to  future  times. 

But,  notwithstanding  the  advantages  which 
the  poor  and  ignorant  derive  from  a  free 
government,  and  from  the  liberal  policy  and 
moral  sentiments  of  a  free  people,  heavy  and 
portentous  clouds  hang  over  the  prospect. 
The  rage  for  speculation,  the  thirst  of  power, 
the  phrenzy  of  ambition,  the  love  of  luxury 
and  ease,  the  pride  of  pomp  and  ostentation, 
will  bring  in  their  train  dependence,  igno- 
rance, servility,  degradation,  and  slavery. 

A  hope  is  entertained  that  this  miniature 
of  seven  great  nations,  which  we  contem- 
plate in  the  distant  vale  of  antiquity,  will  be 
read  by  some  who  would  be  appalled  at  the 
number  and  size  of  the  volumes  of  history. 
Though  it  surely  cannot  answer  a  similar 
purpose,  yet.it  may  answer  a  valuable  pur- 
pose, as  comprising  historical  information 
in  the  lighter,  less  laborious,  and  more  amu- 
.sing  forms  of  reading. 

As  it  is  natural  for  all  men,  and  particular- 
ly writers,  to  endeavour,  if  possible,  to  gain 
some  evidence  of  success,  before  the  irre- 
versible decree  of  the  public  shall  be  issued, 
I  cntnnot  but  hope  that  this  work  will  meet 


DEDICATION.  IX 

with  your  approbation,  which  the  public  will 
not  fail  to  regard  as  the  test  of  merit. 

With  ardent  wishes  for  your  health  and 
happiness,  I  am,  Reverend  Sir, 
Your  most  obedient 

And  very  humble  servant/ 

SAMUEL  WHELPLEY* 

New-York,  Nov,  20tk,  181S. 


CONTENTS. 


Introductory  Lecture,         -        -        -     13 
Lecture  IL  View  of  the  Antediluvian 

world,  -        -        -     26 

Lecture  III.  Egypt,  -        ,        -     46 

IV.  Assyria,  -         -         -65 

V.  The  Medo-Persian  Empire,     86 

VI.  Ancient  Greece,      -         -  1 30 

VII.  Ancient  Greece  continued,  155 

—  VIII.  Ancient  Greece  continued,  173 

^ IX.  Carthage,        -        -        -  193 

X.  Rome,      -        -        -        -  226 

XI.  Rome  continued,     -        -  247 

XII.  The  Hebrew  State,  »  269 

Genius  and  Taste,  an  Allegory,  -        "  297 


LECTURES 

ON 

ANCIENT   HISTORY 


INTRODUCTORY  LECTURE. 

The  origin,  the  fortunes,  and  destiny  of  this 
globe,  will  ever  form  an  interesting  subject  of 
speculation  to  the  humaii  race.  Here  we  begin 
to  exist  ;  here  the  intellectual  powers  first  ex- 
pand, and  we  taste  the  pleasures  of  knowledge 
and  virtue.  From  this  spot  we  first  look  abroad 
on  the  regions  of  existence,  and  by  reflection, 
come  to  the  idea  of  space,  in  which  every  thing 
is,  and  of  duration,  in  which  every  thing  con- 
tinues. 

To  form  a  proper  idea  of  the  comparative  mag- 
nitude, relations,  and  importance  of  this  earth, 
we  ought,  in  imagination,  to  take  our  stand  some- 
where beyond  the  limits  of  the  solar  system, 
whence  we  might  see  that  majestic  luminary,  the. 
sun,  fixed  in  the  centre,  with  all  his  planets,  pri- 
mary and  secondary,  revolving  round  him  at 
stated  periods,  and  rapidly  turning  round  their 
own  centres  to  expose  every  side  equally  to  his 
beams.  By  such  an  observation  we  should  per- 
ceive, at  once,  the  figure  and  motions  of  the  earthy 
her  opacity,  the  respect  she  pays  tg  the  sttH, 
2 


14  UfTRODlfCTlON. 

^found  whom  she  rolls  with  amazing  punctuality  : 
we  should  also  perceive  that  the  moon  pays  the 
same  respect  to  the  earth  which  the  (^arth  does  to 
the  sun,  travelling  round  her  at  stated  periods. 

Such  a  general  view  of  the  system  would  alst 
inform  us,  that,  though  the  earth  is  not  the  small- 
est of  the  bodies  wliitr'a  move  round  tho  sun,  she 
is  by  no  means  the  largest.  We  should  be  sur- 
prised to  see  that  a  thousand  such  globes  as  this, 
rounded  into  one  majestic  world,  would  not  much 
more  than  equal  the  size  of  the  planet  Jupiter, 
and  that  the  earth's  journey  around  the  sun  is 
very  small  compared  with  that  of  Saturn  aiKi 
Herschel.  Yet  the  solar  system,  a  beautiful  fa- 
bric, reared  in  the  boundless  expanse,  seems 
placed  alone.  For  such  is  the  distance  of  all  tlie 
fixed  stars,  that  our  sun,  broad  and  luminous  as^ 
he  is  to  us,  would,  from  any  of  them,  become  but 
a  twinkling  star. 

The  fixed  stars,  retired  at  such  immeasurable 
distance  from  the  neighbourhood  of  our  system, 
while  they  present  a  grand  scet)e  for  contempla- 
tion, and  render  the  night  even  more  interesting 
than  day,  prechide  all  discov-ry  When  view- 
ed through  the  telescope,  they,  indeed,  increase 
our  astonishment,  by  showing  that  their  numbers 
are  as  incalculable  as  their  distance,  and  the 
whole  ethereal  plain  sparkles  with  ih'iir  innumera- 
ble millions,  and  is  lighted  with  joy  and  glory. 

While  the  eye  roves  with  delight  over  such 
boundless  magnificence,  the  mnid  must  be  satis- 
fied with  conjecture  concerning  the  nature  and 
uses  of  the  fixed  stars.  Yet,  judging  iro\r-  the 
econom'y  of  nature,  brought  nearer  to  our  inves- 
tigation, we  are  willing  to  believe  that  the  starry 
concave  is  designed  to  answer  a  far  nobler  pur- 
pose ^^"  ^^  furnish  the  inhabitants  ©f  this  woM 


INTRODUCTION,  15 

with  a  beaulifui  nocturnal  canopy.  It  seems,  in- 
deed, probable,  that  the  tixed  stars  are  ?uns,  shi- 
ning with  their  own  inherent  lu.Are  ^  tha.  Ihey 
give  light  to  systen's  of  planets,  revolving  round 
them  as  our  planets  do  round  our  sun;  that  they 
enlighten,  adorn,  and  cherish  innunieTable  man- 
sions where  creatures  capal^le  of  l-jppiness  exist. 
Their' unalterable  posiiions  and  steady  lustre 
seem  to  indicate  that  they  are  parts  of  one  great 
system,  and  convey  to  us  the  ide.a  of  infiiiite 
'power,  -wisdom,  and  goodness. 

The  planets  revolving  round  our  sun,  in  a  va  • 
riety  of  respects,    which  would  be   proper  to  be 
considered  in  an  astronomical  essay,  resemble  this 
earth,  and  seem  to  be  fitted  up  for  the  residence 
of  creatures  :    but  even  concerning   the   natures 
and  uses  of  these,  we  have  no  information.     Could 
we  stand  where  we  could  survey  the  whole  solar 
system  at  once,  with  optics  adapted  to  such  a  pur- 
pose, the  first  idea  that   would  strike  us  would  be 
its  stupendous  movement,  and  the  amazing  power 
necessary  to  such  motion.     We  should  next  ob- 
serve the   unitbrmity   and    regularity   of  all  the 
great  motions.     All  the  planets  revolve  round  th« 
sun,  tl>ough  at  very  unequal  periods,  and  turn  on 
their  axes  from  west  to  east;  these  com|)licated 
-motions  are  kept  up  with  perfect  exactness  from 
age  to  age  :    no  clock,  no  machine  made  by  man, 
ever  run  so  true.      We  should  observe  tbem  with 
admiration  "-  v/beeling  through  the  void  immense,'* 
and  running   tiieir  destiried  races   in  nearly  the 
same  plane.     V/ e  should  notice  the  uniformity  of 
their  figures,  all  spherical,  all  receiving  their  light 
from  the  sun,  and  paying  homage  to  him  as  their 
superior. 

Thus  far  it  seemed  necessary   to  direct  your 
?.'iews  to  the  frame  and  order  of  that.great  machine 


16  INTEODUCTION. 

in  which  the  world  we  inhabit  forms  a  subordi- 
nate wheel.  Let  us  .low  forsake  our  celestial 
observatory,  and  tak..  a  nearer  view  of  the  earth. 
The  ancient  nations,  for  a  long  time,  believed 
this  world  to  be  a  flat  and  boundless  plain  spread 
out  parallel  to  the  skies  and  heavens.  Experi- 
IBent,  at  length,  showed  that  it  was  a  round  ball, 
and  that  of  no  very  incomprehensible  diameter, 
since  it  might  be  travelled  round  in  two  or  three 
years. 

This  globe  is  not  a  perfect  sphere.  Its  rapid 
rotation  on  itsai^is  is  supposed  to  expand  its  equa- 
torial, and  diminish  its  polar,  diameter.  About 
three  fourths  of  its  surface  is  water ;  though  it  is 
not  very  probable  that  the  depth  of  the  oceans 
bears  any  great  proportion  to  the  earth's  diameter. 
In  the  constitution  of  the  globe  there  is  reason  to 
believe  that  the  heavier  and  denser  bodies,  obe- 
dient to  the  law  of  gravitation,  fell  to  the  centre, 
and  the  rarer  and  lighter  substances  assumed  their 
stations  at  the  surface. 

To  superficial  observation  it  may  be  thought 
admirable,  that  so  great  a  part  of  the  earth's  sur- 
face should  be  occupied  with  a  barren  waste  of 
ocean.  It  should  be  remembered,  that  the  tern- 
perament  of  the  atmosphere  which  surrounds  the 
globe  arises  from  a  due  adjustment  of  tlie  propor- 
tions of  land  and  water.  Were  there  less  water 
on  the  surface  of  the  earth,  the  atmosphere  would 
be  proportionably  more  arid  ;  were  there  more 
water,  the  air  would  be  more  humid.  In  either 
case,  the  globe  would  probably  be  less  favourable 
to  vegetation  and  animal  life  than  it  now  is. 
Were  there  no  oceans,  the  face  of  the  earth,  under 
the  ardent,  unabated,  and  unqualified  influence  of 
the  sun,  would  become  a  barren  desert. 

There  is  usually  reckoned  two  great  continents^ 


INTRODUCTION,  17 

called  the  old  and  the  nerv.  Europe  and  Africa 
are  separated  from  America,  on  the  west,  by  the 
Atlantic  ocean,  and  Asia  is  separated  from  AmC' 
rica,  on  the  east,  by  the  Paciiic  ocean.  There 
probably  is  but  one  continent  or  main  land  :  for 
both  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans  narrow  as 
they  recede  northwardly  ;  and  the  two  continent?, 
growing  broader,  it  is  generally  believed  unite 
and  form  but  one  body  about  the  arctic  polar  re- 
gions. 

In  viewing  the  natural  history  of  the  globe, 
one  surprising  fact  strikes  our  attention  The 
superior  importance  of  the  northern  parts  of  the 
world  to  the  southern.  The  American  continent 
terminates  southwardly  at  Cape  Horn,  in  south  la- 
titude 55^.  The  old  continent  terminates  at  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope,  in  south  latitude  33°.  Below 
these  points,  the  whole  southern  part  of  the  eartb,- 
with  little  exception  is  one  vast  ocean.  The  torrid 
zone,  a  belt  forty -seven  degrees  in  breadth,  lying 
on  each  side  of  the  equator,  is  exposed  to  the  in- 
tense ardour  of  a  verticle  sun.  This,  wherever 
inhabited,  has,  in  all  ages,  been  a  region  of  igno- 
rance, slavery,  vice,  and  misery. 

In  the  northern  temperate  zone  all  the  grear 
nations  have  existed,  and  the  human  race  has  en- 
joyed its  highest  improvement  and  felicity.  This' 
seems  to  have  been  designed  by  the  Creator  as 
the  nurgery  of  men,  the  storehouse  of  nations, 
and  the  region  of  intelligence. 

The  seas  and  oceans  are  diversified  with  isl- 
ands, as  the  continents  are  with  lakes.  They  lie 
in  clusters,  unequally  dispersed  through  the  world 
of  waters.  The  great  island  of  New  lr;oIland, 
lying  southward  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  is 
by  some  called  a  continent.  This  lies  in  an  ir- 
regularly circular  form  of  more  than  1,200  miles 
2* 


18  INTRODUCTION. 

in  diameter.  But  its  iron-bound  shores,  as  they 
are  called,  render  the  approach  of  ve?(Sr:s  dange- 
rous ;  and,  indeed,  the  island  itself,  as  far  as 
examined,  seems  never  to  promise  much  import- 
ance. 

The  atmosphere,  a  transparent  elastic  fluid, 
surrounds  the  globe.  This  body,  which  the  late 
discoveries  in  chymistry  have  shown  to  be  not 
simple,  but  comp(>unded  oi  several  bodies,*  is 
iiighly  necessary  to  animal  and  vegetable  life. 

VVe  have  already  noticed  the  primary  motions 
of  the  solar  system.  Whether  these  continue  by 
the  immediate  impulse  of  divine  energy,  or  by 
intermediate  causes  which  we  cannot  explore,  is 
iLncertaiii.  But  by  the  movement  of  the  great 
wheels  of  nature,  innumerable  subordinate  wheels 
and  springs  are  moved  ;  and  light  and  heat,  ema- 
nating from  the  sun,  fill  the  system  with  motion, 
animation,  and  beauty.  The  powerful  action  of 
the  sun  on  the  atmosphere,  by  rarefying  or  ex- 

*  Dr  Priestley  has  the  honour  of  compleiing  the  decom- 
position of  air ;  and,  by  some  additional  experimer.ts  of 
Lavoisier,  the  air  was  found  to  contain  twenty-seven  parts  of 
oxygen  gas,  and  seventy-three  of  mephitic 'air  ;  vhich  se- 
\en«.y-three,  upon  turther  analysis,  yielded  seventy-two 
parts  of  azotic  gas,  and  one  of  carljonic  acid.  This  is  tlie 
ffiomposition  of  the  air  near  the  surface  of  tlie  earth. 

It  has  been  discovered,  by  experiment,  that  the  pressure 
of  the  atmosphere  sustains  a  column  nf  quicksilver,  of  equal 
|)ase.  30  inches  high  j  and,  consequently,  there  is  a  pressure 
equftl  to  15  pouiids  upon  e\er>  square  inch.  1  he  surface 
of  a  man's  bndy,  at  a  medium  is  supposed  to  be  about  15 
squa'e  f'  et.  He  must,  therefore  sustain  a  weight  of  more 
than  33,000  pounds.  I  he  whole  pressure  of  the  air,  upon 
the  surface  of  the  earth,  is  equal  in  weight  to  a  globe  of 
lead  60  miles  in  diameter. 

By  vai-  us  modes  of  calculation,  it  appears  that  the  at- 
mosphere is  about  i  5  miles  high.  It  cannot  however,  be 
exacily  ascertained,  since  it  becomes  more  and  more  rare- 
lied  in  a  certain  proportioji  to  its  distance  from  the  surface 
oX  the  earth. 


INTRODUCTION.  1§ 

panding  some  parts  of  it  more  than  others,  de- 
stroys its  equilibrium,  and  induces  neighbouring 
columns  of  denser  air  to  rush  forward  to  restore 
the  balance ;  hence  originate  winds,  which  are 
but  columns  of  air  put  in  rapid  motion.  'J'he  ac- 
tion of  heat  on  the  ocean  causes  immense  quanti- 
ties of  water  to  ascend  by  evaporation  ;  these, 
forming  an  aequous  gas,  compose  the  clouds, 
which  are  borne  by  winds  to  distant  regions. 
These  particles,  awhile  suspended  in  the  air,  are 
condensed  by  cold,  and  descend  in  rain  and  devr 
on  the  earth. 

By  waters  descending  from  the  clouds,  springs 
and  brooks,  and,  ultimately,  rivers  are  formed. 
These  currents  of  water,  favoured  by  the  inequa- 
lities of  the  eartli's  surface,  wind  their  way 
through  hills  and  valleys,  and,  by  their  own  gra- 
vity, moving  wherever  they  find  a  descent,  at 
length,  with  an  accumulated  volume,  return  to 
the  ocean.  It  is  a  first  law  of  chymistry,  that  mat- 
ter is  capable  of  three  states,  viz.,  solid,  fluid,  and 
aeriform  Whether  the  powerful  agency  of  the 
sun  is  gradually  producing  a  change  in  the  pro- 
portion of  solids  and  fluids  on  the  globe,  observa- 
tion cannot  certainly  determine.  It  has  beeii 
thought  by  some  naturalists,  that  the  size  of  ri- 
vers has  visibly  diminished  since  the  days  of  an- 
tiquity. It  is,  indeed,  said  of  the  earth  and  hea- 
vens, that  "  they  shall  wax  old  as  doth  a  garment  ;'* 
but  natural  history  records  no  certain  facts  whicli 
indicate  the  decay  and  dotage  of  the  frame  of  na^ 
ture. 

The  continual  ebbing  and  flowing  of  the  sea 
forms  a  curious  and  wonderful  phenomenon.  Th6 
tides,- in  all  ages,  have  excited  equal  inquiry  an^ 
admiration.  Modern  philosophy  claims  the  ho- 
nour of  solving  the  difficulty,  and  assigning  an 


20  INTRODUCTION. 

adequate  cause  for  that  wonderful  appearance. 
Before  the  great  doctrine  of  attraction  was  under- 
stood, the  rejj;ular,  universal,  and  periodical  heav- 
ing of  the  ocean,  might  as  well  have  been  ac- 
counted for  by  supposing  the  earth  was  a  stu- 
pendous aninnal,  at  every  huge  breath  lifting  the 
waters  of  the  ocean.  There  no  longer  remains  a 
doubt  that  the  tides  are  occasioned  by  the  attrac- 
tion of  the  sun  and  moon;  their  general  appear- 
ance confirms,  in  all  respects,  that  supposition. 

The  globe  appears  to  have  been  designed  as 
an  immense  region  of  animation.  The  number 
of  genera,  species,  and  individuals  of  animals, 
though  certainly  finite,  is  truly  amazing.  Natu- 
ralists reckon  more  than  10,000  different  races  of 
insects.  If  all  that  fly  in  the  air,  move  on  the 
earth,  and  swim  in  the  waters  were  reckoned, 
many  of  which  are  yet  unobserved,  the  amount 
would  be  inconceivably  great. 

Light  and  heat  may  be  said  to  form  the  soul  of 
the  material  world  ;  they  seem  to  have  an  in- 
timate connexion  with  the  principles  of  vegeta- 
ble and  animal  life.  There  is  not  a  particle 
of  matter  in  the  solar  system  which  is  at  rest, 
and,  probably,  not  in  the  whole  creation.  Dr. 
Herschel,  who,  by  means  of  powerful  telescopes, 
has  carried  his  speculations,  among  the  fixed 
stars,  perhaps  farther  than  any  other  man,  is  of 
the  opinion  that  they  are  all  in  motion.  This 
opinion  he  maintains  by  arguments  drawn  from 
analogy,  from  observation,  and  from  the  doctrine 
of  attraction. 

The  opinion  of  philosophers  concerning  the 
nature  of  fire  has  been  extremely  various.  Many 
have  maintained  that  it  is  not  a  substance,  nor  an 
element,  but  merely  a  quality  of  material  bodies, 
©r,  as  they  style  it,  the  result  of  chymical  affiai- 


INTRODUCTION.  S'l 

les.  I  think  it  safer  ground  to  keep  nearer  the 
dictates  of  plain  and  common  observation.  Any 
person  who  looks  on  U\e  sun,  and  con.^iders  that 
be  is  1,000,C00  times  larger  than  this  earth,  and 
500  times  larger  than  all  the  planets  put  together; 
when  tbey  perceive  his  brightness  and  i'ee'  his. 
heat;  when  they  perceive  his  rays,  condensed  by 
convex  lenses,  forming  the  most  ardent  heat, 
burning  whatever  is  combustible,  and  dissolving 
whatev^er  is  fusible,  they  naturally  and  safely 
conclude,  that  fire  is  a  substance  ;  that  the  sun 
is  a  globe  of  fire,  and  that  all  the  fire  on  earth 
proceeds  from  that  fountain,  a?  water  does  from 
the  ocean  ;  that  all  terrestrial  fires  ;  that  light- 
ning, electricity,  and  every  species  of  heat, 
both  animal  and  vegetable,  shows  the  presence  of 
that  amazing  element  which  surrounds  the  globe, 
penetrates -every  substance,  and,  probably,  ex- 
tends through  space,  till  it  meets  the  beams  of 
other  suns  coming  from  other  systems. 

This  was  the  opinion  of  the  immortal  New- 
ton, and  has  been  adopted  by  the  soundest  and 
most  acute  philosophers  since  his  time.  Nor 
does  it  appear  to  me  to  have  been  disputed  by 
any  but  those  whose  chymical  reveries  have  be-, 
wildered  their  senses,  and  whose  "  much  learning 
has  made  them  macL'^  I  have  used  the  v/ord 
element,  not  in  allusion  to  the  old  opinion  of  four 
elements  in  nature,  Jire,  air,  earthy  and  Zi'ater — - 
there  may,  indeed,  be  but  one  element  in 
nature.  All  substance,  for  aught  we  know,  may 
be  one,  and,  in  its  simplest  state,  may  be  homoge- 
neous. But  in  the  organization  of  the  universe 
the  Creator  saw  fit  to  arrange  and  modify  material 
bodies,  and  so  to  frame  our  senses,  that  we 
should  receive  different  impressions  from  different -, 
objects. 


%2  NTRODUCTIO.W. 

Whether  the  influence  of  the  sun  continues  the 
planets  in  motion,  cannot  Le  determined  ;  but 
certain  it  is,  that  most  of  the  motions  on  the 
«artii's,  surface,  and  within  the  globe,  are  con- 
tinually propagated  by  the  sun's  influence. 
Were  that  entirely  withdrawn  from  the  earth,  the 
■fluids  of  tiie  atmosphere  would  generally  con- 
dense and  f.si]  tQ  the  earth,  the  w^aters  of  tbn 
ocean  would  uarden  into  ice,  ail  animal  and 
vegetable  life  v.  culd  cease,  and  the  whole  globe 
would  refrigerate  into  an  adamantine  m.ass,  cold, 
motionless,  and  dead.  Fire  is  the  moving  princi- 
ple, and,  as  already  said,  the  soul  of  the  material 
world.  Nor  is  it  impossible  that  it  may  be, 
some  way,  concerned  in  the  grand  and  universal 
law  of  attraction  ;  as  it  is  certain  that  all  the 
planets  are  continually  immersed  and  moving  in 
the  light  of  the  sun  ;  nay,  that  even  the  fixed 
stars  themselves  are  not  placed  beyond  the  ex- 
<:ursion  of  each  other's  beams. 

Do  the  motions  of  the  planets,  or  the  frame  and 
constitution  of  ihe  visible  world,  and  the  continual 
and  rapid  changes  visible  on  the  face  of  the  earth, 
indicate  an  eternal  duration  of  the  system — that 
these  motions  never  began,  but  were  from  eterni- 
ty, and  will  continue  to  eternity  ?  I  think  they 
clearly  indicate  the  contrary,  viz,  that  they  did 
begin,  and  will  have  an  end.  'i'his  abstruse  phi- 
losophical inquiry  would  be  improper  to  be  pur- 
sued in  this  place.  The  creation  of  the  world, 
and  the  origin  of  the  human  race,  being  immova- 
bly fixed,  on  the  authority  of  divine  revelation,  to 
those  whose  leisure  and  philosophical  turn  of  mind 
may  lead  them  into  such  inquiries,  it  will  be 
profitable  and  pleasing  to  examine  the  light  of  na- 
ture. If  it  do  not  go  hand  in  iKsnd  with  revela'- 
fion,  it  will  never  ha  fouii4  to  contradict  if. 


iifTRODtJeTroN.  23 

The  best  modern  chronologers  fix  the  time  of 
Ihe  creation  at  4004 -years  before  the  Christian 
jera  ;  the  deluge  in  the  year  of  the  world  -  656, 
or  2348  years  before  Christ  ;  and  the  founding  of 
Rome,  in  the  year  753  before  Christ.  Chronolo- 
gical disputes  are  now  considered  as  nearly  set- 
tled, and  at  an  end.  Most  of  the  English  writers 
submit  to  the  opinions  of  Usher,  Prideaux,  and 
Bedford.  Indeed,  most  of  the  catholic  writers, 
than  whom  perhaps  none  were  more  learned  in 
ancient  history  than  Du  Pin,  agree  essentially  in 
the  great  outline  of  chronology.  The  arguments 
€)n  which  these  points  are  settled  are  too  volumi- 
nous to  find  a  place  here,  and  the  particular  ele- 
ments from  which  they  are  drawn  would  have 
little  interest.  In  this  place  it  will  be  suiTicient 
to  observe,  that  the  extensive  and  diligent  research- 
es for  the  knowledge  of  antiquity,  since  the  re- 
vival of  letters,  have  been  crowned  with  great 
success.  The  body  of  facts,  and  collateral  testi- 
monies relative  to  the  four  great  monarchies,  is 
surprisingly  full,  considering  the  length  and  seve- 
rity of  the  reign  of  Gothic  darkness,  considering 
they  have  made  their  way  to  us  through  centuries 
of  nights. 

1  have  given  an  outline  and  general  character 
of  the  globe,  regarded  as  a  constituent  part  of  the 
planetary  system,  and  also  as  a  region  of  vegeta- 
ble and  animal  life.  We  are  called  to  be  spectators 
and  ittiiabitants  of  that  globe  after  it  has  existed 
probably  about  5817  years.  For  if  to  4004,  the 
year  of  the  world  in  which  Christ  was  born,  we 
add  1813,  the  present  year  of  the  christian  sera, 
shall  have  6817. 

The  sphere  of  actual  observation  is,  compara- 
tively, but  a  point  of  time  and  space.  The  pre- 
sent moment,  which  is  all  we  can  possess,  is  ever 


'24  INTRODUCTION. 

sliding  away.  Before  us,  indeed,  opens  a  bound- 
less duration  ;  "  but  shadows,  clouds,  and  dark- 
ness, rest  upon  it."  It  is  not  so  vvith  the  past : 
Providence  has  given  us  the  lights  of  history, 
which  offer  to  conduct  us  back  to  the  infancy  of 
nature,  if  we  have  industry  and  vigour  to  pursue 
their  path. 

It  is  the  design  of  these  lectures  to  give  some 
general  view  of  the  rise  and  fall  of  nations;  of 
their  character,  manners,  revolutions,  and  geo- 
graphical situation.  In  the  present  scheme  I 
propose  to  comprehend  a  period  of  4,004  years, 
extending  from  the  creation  to  the  Christian  aera. 
This  will  be  comprised  in  twelve  lectures,  enti- 
tled, A  General  View  of  Ancient  History.  The 
Firsts  which  is  the  present  one,  will  be  the  Intro- 
duction. The  Second  will  be  a  view  of  the  ante- 
diluvian world,  including  the  deluge.  The  Third 
will  be  a  view  of  Egypt.  The  Fourth,  a  view  of 
Assyria.  The  Fifth,  a  view  of  Media  and  Per- 
sia. The  Sixth,  Seventh,  and  Eighth,  of  Greece. 
The  JVi7ith,  of  Carthage.  The  Tenth  and  Ele- 
venth, of  Rome.  The  Twelfth,  of  the  Jewish 
State. 

1  have  been  induced  to  adopt  this  plan  from  a 
strong  persuasion  of  its  decided  preference  to 
one  more  limited  and  local.  An  historical  tract, 
containing  a  condensed  narrative,  and  a  full  and 
ample  detail  of  events  might  excite  more  interest, 
and  to  some  would,  certainly,  be  more  pleasing; 
but  it  would,  ultimately,  convey  far  less  instruc- 
tion. History  is  less  studied,  and  less  systema- 
tized, in  this  country  than  its  importance  de- 
mands. Whatever  tends  to  generalize  and  classi- 
fy the  objects  of  human  knowledge  diminishes- 
the  labour  of  acquisition,  and  aids  the  power  o£ 
retention.     The  almost  total  want  of  classifica- 


INTPvODUCTIOrV.  ZO 

tion  in  extensive  historical  details,  renders  the 
learning  of  history  slow  and  laborious,  and  our 
stock  of  knowledge,  small  and  evanescent.  A 
man,  from  the  reading  of  ten  volumes,  shall  re- 
tain less  than  he  might  acquire  from  what  might 
be  thrown  into  the  pages  of  a  pamphlet,  when 
duly  selected,  arranged,  and  classified. 

After  giving  a  concise  geographical  descrip- 
tion of  each  country,  {  shall  divide  its  history 
into  convenient  periods,  agreeable  to  such  great 
revolutions  and  events  as  it  may  contain. 


LECTURE  If. 


View  of  the  Antediluvian  World. 

The  histoiy  which  Moses  has  given  of  ihe 
Greation  of  the  world,  and  of  those  events  which 
b^gan  the  career  of  human  existence,  when  view- 
ed by  the  writer  of  civil  and  natural  history,  ap- 
pears like  a  venerable  fabric  built  on  grounds 
which  he  cannot  approach.  To  all  who  do  not 
believe  in  the  absolute  eternity  of  the  world,  that 
history  must  hold  the  first  claim  to  veracity.  It 
asserts  nothing  repugnant  to  itself.  It  is  rational, 
simple,  and  incomparably  majestic.  When  once 
it  is  admitted  that  the  almighty,  eternal,  and  in- 
finite God  can  create,  the  account  Moses  has  given 
contains  nothing  but  what  the  best  reason  of  the 
most  enlightened  mind,  readily  approves;  no- 
thing but  what  might  be  expected  in  the  conduct 
of  God  ;  nothing  unsuitable  to  the  character  of 
divine  inspiration. 

The  history  of  Moses  conveys  the  idea  that 
nothing  is  eternal  and  uncreated  but  God  ;  that 
he  created  the  world  in  six  days,  and  rested  from 
his  work  on  the  seventh.  We  have  no  certain 
information  that  the  heavens  and  earth,  compri- 
sing that  system,  and  those  orders  of  creatures 
which  we  know,  were  the  iirst  of  the  Creator's 
works.  There  may  be  regions  of  existence  mil- 
lions of  times  more  remote  from  the  farthest  fix- 
ed star  that  we  can  discover,  than  that  star  is 
fi'om  us..    There  may  be  creature?;,  yea,  thou- 


THE  AKTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  27 

sands  and  thousands  of  orders  of  creatures,  of 
whose  natures  and  faculties  we  have  no  concep- 
tion. There  is,  probably,  no  one  creature  wh© 
is  acquainted  with  all  the  works  of  the  Creator, 
It  is,  at  least,  proper  for  us  to  consider  that  in 
every  period  of  the  duration  of  the  supreme  God, 
he  has  been  able  to  give  life  and  being,  and  rea- 
son, and  happines,  to  creatures  ;  and  it  will  pro- 
bably be  the  delightful  employment  of  immortal 
creatures  to  become  more  and  more  extensively 
acquainted  with  beings  of  diverse  and  superior 
faculties,  and  with  different  departments  of  Jeho- 
vah's great  kingdom. 

Man  was  made  pure^  and  holy,  and  happy,  and 
immortal.  But  he  soon  rebelled  against  his  ma- 
ker, forfeited  his  favour,  and  became  sinful,  mi 
serable,  and  mortal.  This  change  in  his  rnoral 
character  subjected  him  to  various  calamities. 
The  first  was  an  immediate  change  in  his  place 
of  residence.  He  was  expelled  from  the  garden 
of  Eden,  a  beautiful  region,  abounding  with  eve- 
yy  thing  necessary  to  render  life  comfortable  and 
delightful.  Here  he  might  have  lived,  without 
painful  care  or  servile  labour,  on  the  abundance 
which  prolific  nature,  under  the  perpetual  smile 
of  heaven,  spontaneously  brought  forth. 

At  the  time,  however,  when  sentence  of  death 
was  pronounced  upon  him,  and  he  was  command- 
ed to  retire  from  Paradise,  an  intimation  was 
given  him  that,  as  a  penitent,  both  he  atid  his 
posteritj;  should  obtain  the  favourable  notice  oi 
the  offended  Deity,  and  should  be  placed  under 
a  government  of  grace,  in  a  state  of  probation. 
■  "^The  scene  of  these  transactions  is  believed  to 
have  been  in  the  country  of  Mesopotamia,  per- 
haps not  tar  from  the  junction  of  the  rivers  Tigris 
znd  Euphrates ;  but  of  this  we  have   no  cerlaiii 


28  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

evidence.  The  removal  of  the  father  and  uju- 
ther  of  mankind  from  Paradise,  must  have  pro' 
duced  a  great,  sudden,  and  painful  change  in 
their  modes  of  living.  Though  a  favouring  Pro- 
vidence still  pursued  them,  and  while  they  Vv^ere 
beginning  to  gain  experience  in  husbandry,  the 
truly  original  and  most  honourable  of  all  occupa- 
tions, they  were  enabled  to  subsist,  in  a  measure, 
©n  the  natural  productions  of  the  earth. 

The  opinion  has  generally  prevailed,  that  the 
use  of  flesh  was  unknown,  as  an  article  of  food, 
till  after  the  deluge,  in  the  grant  made  to  Adam 
of  the  articles  of  subsistence,  flesh  is  not  men- 
tioned. In  the  one  made  to  Noah  and  his  sons,  it 
is  expressly  named.  It  is  rational  to  suppose  that 
the  deluge  might  have  wrought  some  changes  on 
the  soil  and  climate  which  rendered  the  produc- 
tion of  fruits  and  vegetables  more  precarious,  and, 
of  course,  an  enlargement  of  the  grant  more  need- 
ful. 

The  murder  of  Abel,  the  curse  and  rejectioa 
of  Cain,  and  the  birth  and  adoption  of  Seth,  are 
almost  the  only  events  related  of  the  immediate 
family  of  Adam,  after  his  fall.  Nothing  could  be 
more  deeply  interesting  to  the  curious  mind  than 
a  particular  account  of  the  various  events  of  his 
life.  It  is  not  to  be  doubted  that  he  addressed 
himself  to  labour  for  a  subsistence.  He  and  his 
lovely  consort  were  far  less  frail,  and  far  less 
subject  to  the  importunate  pressure  of  imaginary; 
wants,  than  we  are.  Some  sort  of  shelter,  at 
times,  they  certainly  needed  ;  food  they  must 
have,  and  clothing  appears  to  have  been  instituted;, 
and  even  provided,  in  the  first  instance,  by  God 
himself.  But  their  rooms  were  not  hung  wnth  ta- 
pestry, nor  decorated  with  costly  sidei  oards  of 
plate.     They  reposed  not  on  beds  of  down,  no? 


THE   Ax\TEDlLUVIA.\   WORLD.  29 

were  Ihey  clad  in  the  labours  of  the  loom,  nor  the 
spoils  of  the  silk  uorii!.  Endued  with  health 
and  vigour,  that  should  resi'^t  the  lapse  of  ages, 
their  countenances,  methinks,  rivalled  the  vivid 
tints  of  the  rose,  and  their  smiles  the  lustre  of 
the  opening  morning. 

The  world  was  peopled  by  the  descendants  of 
Cain  and  Seth,  and  the  other  children  of  Adam 
whose  names  are  not  mentioned.  These  increas- 
ed with  a  rapidity  of  which  we  can  hardly  form 
an  adequate  conception.  Though  the  whole  race 
was  mortal,  yet  the  age  of  man  was  at  first  ex- 
tended to  the  period  of  almost  a  thousand  years. 
This  great  length  of  human  life  is  frequently  re- 
ferred to  by  the  ancient  heathen  writers,  and  the 
"belief  of  it  had  mingled  wit!)  their  traditions  and 
fables,  and  is  there  found  staled  in  various  formSj 
both  in  their  writers  of  prose  and  verse. 

Adam  lived  930  years.  Previous  to  his  death 
he  probably  saw  more  of  his  descendants  alive, 
around  him,  tiian  any  monarch,  not  even  except- 
ing the  emperor  of  China,  ever  saw  of  his  sub- 
jects :  -cilthougb  there  are  said  to  be  more  than  333 
millions  of  people  in  China.  It  will  be  surpri- 
sing to  consider  that  Adam  lived  with  his  sen 
Seth  800  years,  with  his  grandson  Enos  695 
years,  with  his  great  grandson  Cainan  605  years, 
with  Mahalaleel  535  years,  with  Jared  470 
years,  with  Methuselah  243  years,  and  with 
Lamech  56  years.  I  will  here  add  that  Noah 
lived  with  Enos,  the  grandson  of  Adam,  84 
years,  with  Cainan  179  years,  with  Mshalaleei 
234,  years  with  Jared  366  years,  with  Methu- 
selah 600  years,  with  Lamech,  his  father,  595 
years  ;  and  after  the  flood,  with  Shem,  his  son, 
350  years,  with  Arphaxad,  his  grandson, 348  years, 
with  Salah,  his  great  grandson,  313  years,  with 
3* 


30  ANCIENT    HISTORV. 

El)er,  bis  fourth  in  descent,  283  years,  with  Pelcg, 
his  fifth  in  d^^scent,  239  years,  with  Keu,  the  sixth 
in  descent,  219  years,  with  Serug,  the  seventh  in 
descent,  187  years,  with  Nahor,  the  eighth  in  de- 
scent, 148  years,  and  with  Terah,  the  ninth  in  de- 
«  cent  11  8  years. 

Thus,  it  appears,  that  eighty-four  of  the  first 
years  of  Noah's  life  were  contemporary  with 
eighty-four  of  the  last  of  Enos,  the  grandson  of 
Adam.  And  that  Noah's  last  128  years  were 
past  with  the  first  128  years  of  the  life  of  Terah, 
the  father  of  Abraham.  Through  what  an  im- 
ineitse  range  of  experience,  thought,  observation, 
and  action,  those  men  must  have  passed  !  But  I 
reserve  this  for  the  close  of  this  lecture. 

It  is  remarkable,  that  the  subjects  of  war  and 
government  are  not  mentioned  before  the  deluge. 
The  crime  of  murder  having  taken  place  so  early 
in  the  fanriily  of  Adam,  leaves  little  room  to  doubt 
that  there  were  wars ;  and  it  is  expressly  de- 
clared, that  the  earth  was  filled  with  violence. 
But  the  fame  of  the  exploits  of  antediluvian  he- 
roes was  destined  to  perish  in  the  flood.-  It  is, 
indeed,  a  shame  to  the  human  race,  that,  since 
the  flood,  those  men  have  been  most  famous  who 
have  inflicted  the  most  misery  on  mankind.  All 
history  agrees  in  giving  Alexander  the  Great  the 
first  place  in  the  list  of  fame,  and  it  seems  for  no 
other  reason  but  because  be  was  the  greatest  de- 
stroyer of  mankind.  It  is  little  to  be  doubted, 
that  the  sources  of  his  fame,  in  this  world,  will  be 
the  causes  of  his  deepest  regret  in  the  world  to 
come  ;  and  that,  what  has  covered  his  name  with 
such  glory  among  men,  will  cover  him  with  shame 
and  everlasting  contempt  before  God. 

The  governments  in  these  early  times  were, 
doubtless,  very  simple,  and,  probably,  patri- 
archal.     Originating  from  such  a  fountain,  we 


THE  ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  <fl 

readily  perceive  they    might  have  been    nume- 
rous. 

Nature  seems  to  give  every  parent  the  riglit  of 
commanding  his  children.  And  it  is  v  <  ry  evident, 
that  in  ihe  early  ages  parents  held  the  power  of 
life  and  death  over  their  children.  Among  the 
sacient  Romans  the  father  had  a  right  to  sell  his 
children,  in  some  cases,  after  they  were  of  age. 
lii  China  ih.ere  still  exists  some  faint  image  of 
patriarchal  (uonarctiy.  The  emperor  is  consider- 
ed as  ihe  father  uf  liis  people  ;  and  Ci:;na  is  be- 
lieved, by  many,  to  have  been  founded  by  Noah  ; 
consequently,  to  have  derived  her  customs,  man- 
ners, and  traditions,  from  very  ancient  sources. 

Whether  language  was  given  to  our  iirst  parents, 
immediately  by  the  Creator,  or  whether  they 
were  left  to  the  impulse  of  necessity  and  efforr, 
of  reason,  to  cultivate  their  vocal  powers,  we  do 
not  know.  To  me  there  seems  little  reason  for 
supposing  language  inspired.  Language  is  but 
the  clothing  of  our  thoughts.  Human  beings,  at 
the  moment  of  their  creation,  and  for  some  lime 
after,  could  have  little  need,  or  rather,  no  possi- 
ble use  for  a  language  of  any  extent  or  copious- 
ness. 

The  case  has  often  been  supposed  of  two 
■children  brought  up  togetiier,  but  excluded  from 
all  other  society,  so  perfectly  as  never  to  hear  a 
word  spoken  ;  it  has  been  asked  whether  these 
children  would  have  a  language.  1  have  read  of 
some  experiments  tried,  in  this  way,  but  never  of 
any  that  were  complete  and  satisfactory.  Kollin, 
Trom^ancient  authorities,  relates,  that  Psammeti- 
cus,,king  of  Egypt,  shut  up  two  infants  in  some 
ren-.ote  place,  and  ordered  them  to  be  carefully 
iiouiished,  but  never  to  hear  a  word  spoken  ;  and 
knowing  the  sociable   temper  of  the  'ladies,  h« 


'^SJ  ANCIENT    HiSTOIii. 

ordered  their  nurse  to  have  her  tongue  cut  out,  tot 
fear  she  naight,  by  accident,  speak  before  them, 
and  ruin  his  experinnent.  At  the  end  of  two 
years,  as  the  old  shepherd,  to  whom  the  business 
was  intrusted,  entered  the  cell  where  they  were 
kept,  they  both  exclaimed  bekkus,  bekkos.  The 
shepherd  reported  this  to  the  king,  who,  perceiving 
the  import  of  these  words  unknown,  ordered  in- 
quiry to  be  made  whether  these  words  belonged 
to  any  language.  It  is  said  they  were  found  to 
signify  bread  in  the  Phrygian  language  ;  of 
course,  that  was  acknowledged  to  be  the  language 
of  nature,  in  preference  to  Ihe  Egyptian. 

Shuckford  states,  that  Melabdin  Achber,  an 
ancient  king  of  India,  tried  nearly  the  same  ex- 
periment, with  somewhat  similar  success.  But 
this,  at  best,  would  be  a  \ery  unfair  experiment. 
Our  first  parents,  brought  into  existence  with  the 
highest  possible  maturity  of  faculties,  or,  at  least, 
as  far  as  they  could  be  mature,  without  experi- 
ence, favoured  with  some  intercourse  with  their 
Creator,  and,  perhaps,  with  his  angels,  might  have 
received  some  important  intimatTons  relative  to 
the  use  of  sound  in  conveying  thoughts.  These, 
by  long  experience,  were  ma'tured  into  language. 
The  circumstance  of  Adam's  naming  the  beasts 
is  commonly  urged  as  a  proof  that  language  was 
inspired.  It  should  be  remembered,  that  in  ra- 
pid and  general  narratives,  events  are  often  sta- 
ted without  precise  regard  to  the  order  of  time. 
To  me  it  is  not  likely  that  all  the  beasts  were 
brought,  at  once,  and  received  their  names.  But 
when  once  the  idea  of  distinguishing,  by  appro- 
priate names,  occurred,  the  business  of  naming 
might  have  begun,  and,  at  length,  after  a  long 
series  of  generations,  animals  were  distinguished 


THE  ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  33 

into  species  and  genera,  as  well  as  trees,  and 
plants,  and  flowers,  and  insects. 

When  we  consider  tbnt,  after  a  man  bad  lived 
500  years,  he  was  still  in  the  prime  of  life,  in  full 
vigour,  (and  we  cannot  but  imagine  that  the  na- 
tive vigour  of  body  and  mind,  in  those  times,  was 
as  much  greater  than  it  is  now,  as  human  life  was 
longer,)  we  must  conclude,  that  their  improvement 
in  every  thing  which  depended  on  their  own 
faculties,  was  very  great.  Now,  a  man  in  seven 
years  becomes  an  artist.  But  men  who  lived 
900  years  would  have  abundance  of  time  to  be- 
come incomparable  artists  in  every  art  ;  nay, 
to  become  great  scholars  in  every  science. 
Admitting  human  life  to  have  been  ten  times, 
and  it  was  in  fact  thirteen  times,  longer  than  it 
is  now,  the  proportion  of  advantage  was  far 
greater  than  the  mere  proportion  of  time.  Let 
us,  for  a  moment,  suppose,  that  West,  the  cele- 
brated painter,  who  is  now  70  years  old,  had  all 
the  vigour  of  25  or  30  years,  and  could  continue 
to  pursue  his  studies  and  profession  for  70  years 
longer,  nay,  for  ten  times  70  years,  for  700 
years,  to  what  pitch  of  excellence  might  he  not 
attain  ?  Let  him,  for  that  time,  be  surrounded 
with  rival  artists,  and  improved  by  the  discove- 
ries of  so  many  years  and  ages.  The  mere 
prospect  of  such  a  term  of  time  to  pursue  an  ob- 
ject, would  give  incredible  vigour  to  pursuit,  ex- 
tent to  discovery,  and  perfection  to  improvement. 

The  improvements  of  language,  whatever 
might  have  been  its  origin,  must  have  been  ex- 
ceedingly great.  Indeed,  it  is  a  general  opinion 
that  alphabetic  writing  might  have  been,  and 
probably  was,  of  antediluvian  origin.  Respecting 
the  Egyptian  tiaim  to  the  invention  of  letters^ 
it  can  only  be  said,  that  letters  were  very  earl/ 


34  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

in  Egypt,  but  their  exact  antiquitj  cannot  be 
ascertained. 

Something  of  the  fine  arts  was  certainly  known 
before  the  deluge.  Jabal,  the  sixth  in  descent 
from  Cain,  was  a  shepherd,  and  dwelt  in  tents  ; 
Jubal,  his  brother,  was  a  musician,  and  is  called 
the  father  of  them  that  handle  the  harp  and  the 
organ.  Tubal  Cain,  another  brother  of  the  same 
family,  vvas  an  instructor  of  every  artificer  in 
brass  and  iron,  and  is  supposed  to  be  the  same  as 
Vulcan,  the  god  of  fire.  The  building  of  the 
ark  is  a  sufficient  proof  of  the  amazing  extent  to 
which  some  kinds  of  architecture  were  known. 
The  ark  was  a  building  framed  of  timber,  517 
feet  long,  94  broad,  and  55  feet  high  ;  incom- 
parably the  largest  building  ever  designed  to  float 
as  a  ship  on  the  water ;  it  was  indeed  the  largest 
buildijig  ever  erected  of  timber,  for  any  pur- 
pose whatever.  Though  the  dimensions  and 
plan  of  this  stupendous  building  were  prescribed 
by  divine  direction,  yet  there  is  every  reason  t© 
believe  that  it  vvas  put  together  according  to  the 
known  principles  and  rules  of  building. 

Where  is  the  carpenter  or  builder  among  us 
who  could  construct  a  building  of  wood  517  ket 
long,  94  broad,  and  55  high,  capable  of  sustaining 
the  immense  burden  carried  by  the  ark — 
perfectly  water  tight,  accommodated  with  such  a 
numerous  variety  of  rooms — divided  into  three 
separate  lofts  or  stories,  properly  ballasted  to 
keep  its  upright  and  level  position — -able  to 
sustain  the  swells  and  surges  of  a  tempestuous 
sea,  so  as  neither  to  be  broken,  overset,  founder- 
ed, or  impaired  ?  The  iron  work  in  this  building 
rnust  have  been  great,  and  very  complicated ; 
and  the  whole  fabric  required  amazing  skill, 
either  previously  acquired,  or  directly  inspired  at 


THK  ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  OiJ 

the  time;  such  as  would  certainly  imply  the 
necessity  of  the  largest  forges  or  I'urnaces,  as 
well  as  all  the  lesser  apparatus  of  iron  manufac- 
tories. 

The  whole  fabric  of  the  ark  required  the  most 
thorough  and  consummate  skill  of  workmen  of 
various  desciij)tions,  both  in  timber  and  iron. 
.But  what  could  not  the  unabated  ardor,  the 
accumuialed  experience,  the  incessant  emulation, 
©f  800  years  effect?  for.  taking  off  nearly  a 
century  and  a  half  for  what  miglit  then  be  called 
infancy  and  age,  that  long  period  vs^ould  be  left. 
The  progress  of  an  art  for  800  years  in  a  modern 
nation,  gives  us  no  idea  of  antediluvian  skill  and 
progress  ;  for  now,  at  least  once  in  30  or  40 
years,  the  old  workman  ceases  and  a  new  one 
begins  from  childhood,  and  has  all  the  painful 
grades  of  apprenticeship  to  labor  through,  and  it 
may  often  happen  that  the  apprentice,  through 
some  detect  of  taste  or  talents,  will  never  come 
tip  to  the  skill  of  his  master.  Thus  it  is  im- 
probable that  West,  in  ail  his  school  of  painters, 
will  have  an  equal,  perhaps,  indeed,  his  pupils 
will  be  mere  daubers  in  comparison  with  him.  Vet 
in  800  years  what  progress  is  made  in  art  and 
science !  It  is  but  about  400  years  since  clocks 
first  appeared  in  England.  Henry  De  Wick  setup 
a  rude  one  in  the  tower  of  Charles  the  Fifth's 
palace.*  Since  that  time,  what  amazing  perfec- 
tion that  species  of  timepiece  has  acquired  1 
You  will  see  a  watch,  perfectly  constructed  in  all 
Its  wheels,  on  the  seal  of  a  lady's  ring.  A  clock 
you  will  see  wound  up  by  the  wind.     You   wiB 

*  The  oldest  clock  now  in  England  stands  in  the  palace 
of  Hnraptou  Court,  made  in  1^4(),  in  the  reign  of  Henry 
the  B'rghth. 


SQ  ANCIENT   HISTaAY. 

see  a  Rittenhouse  exhibit  a  clock  tliat  sball  dis- 
play all  the  revolutions  of  the  planets.  Some 
watches  are  so  curiously  made  that  they  will 
wind  up  merely  by  wearing.  Some  clocks  will 
play  a  tune  :  in  short,  the  noblest  and  most  com- 
plicated clock  perhaps  ever  made  stands  in  the 
cathedral  church  of  Strasburgh,  and  exhibits  a 
variety  of  objects,  motions,  and  curious  phe- 
nomena perfectly  beyond  all  belief.. 

But  what  if  the  artist  who  made  this  cathedral 
clock,  had  had  a  race  of  exertion,  competitiony 
and  fame  to  run,  of  the  prodigious  extent  of  800 
years  ?  Both  he,  and  even  Henry  De  Wick,  who 
lived  long  before  him,  at  that  rate  of  human  life^ 
would  now  have  been  but  in  their  prime.  The 
same  may  be  said  of  all  the  great  luminaries  of 
science  and  art  who  lived  in,  and  since,  the  revi- 
val of  letters.  Erasmus,  Grotius,  Puflendorf, 
Montesquieu,  Des  Cartes,  Newton,  Locke,  Shak- 
?peare,  Fenelon  ;  even  Galileo,  Copernicus,  and 
Kepler,  would  still  have  been  young  men. 

I  have  urged  this  point  the  more,  as  I  am  per- 
suaded that  we  entertain  very  incorrect  ideas  of 
the  state  of  improvement  in  the  world  before  the 
deluge.  But,  alas  !  as  they  improved  in  know- 
ledge, they  improved,  if  that  expression  be  cor- 
rect, in  vice.  The  state  of  their  morals,  at  lengthy 
became  so  exceedingly  corrupt,  that  the  Almigh- 
ty Ruler  determined,  by  one  signal  act,  to  sweep 
the  degenerate  race  from  the  earth,  preserving 
©nly  Noah  and  his  immediate  family  alive. 

Various  theories  are  set  up  concerning  the  man- 
ner of  the  deluge  ;  and  many  of  the  ablest  writers, 
who  have  discussed  this  subject,  believe  that,  at- 
the  time  of  the  deluge,  there  were  some  conside- 
rable changes  in  the  great  frame  of  nature — in  the 
motions  of  the  heavens  and  earth.     They  believe. 


THE  ANTEDILtrVIAN  WORLD.  33" 

when  the  motions  of  the  earth  round  the  sun  com- 
menced, that  the  axis  of  the  erirth  lay  at  ri2;ht  an 
gles  to  the  plane  of  her  orbit :  of  course,  that  the 
equator  and  ecliptic  coincided.  The  conse- 
quence of  this  would  be,  that  the  days  and  nights 
would  he  of  equal  lengrh  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 
The  seasons  would,  in  that  case,  have  been  more 
temperate,  the  globe  more  pleasant,  and,  proba- 
bly, more  healthy.  Hence,  they  deduce  one  ar- 
gument for  the  shortening  of  human  hie  after  the 
flood.  This  subject  is  largely  discussed  in  Bed- 
ford's Chronology,  and  Shuckford's  Ancient  His- 
tory, and  in  many  other  books.  Such  an  opi- 
Bion,  were  it  known  to  be  true,  would,  conve- 
iriently  enough,  account  for  many  things  we  may 
observe  in  the  natural  history  of  the  world.  The 
only  difficulty  I  see  in  the  way  of  adopting  it  is 
the  want  of  evidence,  without  which  it  is  not  ve- 
ry philosophical,  or  safe,  to  hazard  an  opinion. 

Bishop  Burnet,  in  his  Theory,  advances  the 
opinion,  that  before  the  deluge,  the  ocean  w-as 
all  subterraneous  ;  that  the  land  was  incrusted 
over  the  ocean  somewhat  like  an  egg-shell ;  that 
at  the  deluge,  this  shield  of  land  was  broken  up^ 
and,  consequently,  sunk,  and  the  waters  rose 
above  it.  The  same  difficulty  stands  in  the  way 
of  this  opinion  as  of  the  former;  we  have  no  cer- 
tain evidence  of  such  a  fact.  Some  philosophers 
have  pretended  to  believe  that  the  deluge  was 
occasioned  by  a  watery  comet,  whose  train  swept 
the  earth,  and  caused  a  general  flood.  The  ques- 
tion is,  whether  there  are  watery  comets  ;  and,  if 
there  are,  whether  one  of  them  touched  the  earth  : 
we  have  no  certain  evidence  of  either  of  these- 
positions. 

All  that  I  shall  advance  as  a  theory  of  the  de- 
luge is,  that  from  the  size  of  the  oceans,  and  hii- 
4 


3b  ANCIENT  HTSTOUr. 

midity  of  the  atmosphere,  there  appears  to  bcf 
water  sufficient  to  effect  a  general  deluge.  How 
far  the  causes  of  so  great  an  inundation  were  na- 
tural, or  supernatural,  is  of  no  direct  concern  to 
us,  either  as  philosophers  or  theologians ;  for 
the  laws  of  nature  are  but  that  due  arrangement 
of  causes  and  effects  which  the  almighty  Creator 
established  in  his  kingdom.  A  natural  cause  as 
fully  implies,  and  as  truly  accomplishes,  the  di- 
vine purpose  as  a  miracle.  Matter  is  as  much 
under  the  control  of  Deity  as  mind,  and  its  laws 
are  but  the  uniform  manifestation  of  his  power 
and  wisdom. 

The  deluge  forms  a  conspicuous  article  in  the 
history  of  Moses  ;  but  it  has,  considered  as  a  fact, 
the  advantage  of  much  collateral  testimony.  Jo- 
sephus,  the  Jewish  historian,  expressly  declares 
that,  in  all  the  ancient  heathen  writers,  mention 
is  made  of  the  deluge.  I  have  in  my  Compend  of 
History  given  a  brief  statement  of  the  testimony 
of  heathen  writers  on  that  article.  It  is  a  fact, 
that  not  only  the  Greek  and  Roman  writers  are 
explicit  and  full,  concerning  a  general  deluge, 
but  it  is  found  in  the  histories,  writings,  fables, 
and  traditions,  of  the  Chinese,  Indians,  and  of  all 
the  ancient  nations  of  western  Asia :  we  may 
also  add,  the  savages  of  America. 

Beside  a  general  combination  of  historical  tes- 
timony, there  is  another  source  of  evidence  of 
the  deluge.  The  surface  of  the  earth,  in  almost 
every  place  where  observations  have  been  made» 
exhibits  such  appearances  as  a  universal  deluge 
might  be  supposed  to  have  occasioned.  Sea. 
shells  and  marine  productions  are  found  in  abun- 
dance far  distant  from  the  ocean,  and  in  situation?, 
for  v/hich  nothing  can  so  well  account  as  the  sup- 
position of  a  general  deluge,   and,   in  fact,  fa^k 


THE  ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  35? 

wliich  nothing  can  at  all  account  but  that  suppo- 
sition ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  no  argument, 
from  the  natural  history  of  the  earth,  can  be 
brought  to  militate  against  the  supposition. 

The  famous  argument  of  Count  Borch,  so 
pompously  boasted  of  by  an  illuminated  deistical 
philosopher,  and  the  doubts  of  the  Abby  Recupe- 
ro,  drawn  from  the  strata  of  the  lava  of  Mount 
iEtna,  may  here  deserve  a  moment's  attention. 
By  digging  down  where  the  eruptions  of  ^Etna, 
have  successively  overspread  the  ground,  they 
calculate  in  the  following  manner :  Finding  a 
stratum  of  earth  between  each  stratum  of  lava, 
they  say  it  must  have  taken  such  a  certain  length 
of  time  for  the  earthy  stratum  to  be  formed  be- 
tween each  stratum  of  lava  ;  and  the  successive 
strata  of  lava  and  earth  being  too  numerous  to 
admit  the  intervening  calculated  periods  between 
this  and  the  deluge,  or  even  the  creation,  accord- 
ing, to  the  Mosaic  account,  that,  therefore,  the 
history  given  by  Moses  cannot  be  true. 

Count  Borch  pretends  to  prove  that  Mount 
5^tna  is  8.000  years  old,  by  the  different  Layers 
of  vegetable  earth  between  the  strata  of  lava  as 
above  said.  The  canon  Recupero  also  discover- 
ed a  stratum  of  lava  which  he  supposed  was  depo- 
sited in  the  time  of  the  second  Punic  war,  or 
about  2,000  years  ago.  But  in  digging  a  pit 
near  Jaci,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  ^tna,  he  dis- 
covered seven  layers  of  lava  with  earth  between 
of  considerable  tliickness,  so  that  ^tna,  by  this  in- 
dication, must  have  stood  at  least  fourteen  thou- 
sand years. 

^Nothing  can  be  more  fallacious  or  stupid  than 
this  argument,  if,  indeed,  it  deserves  to  be  digni- 
fied by  the  name  of  argument.  Who  knows 
s^hat  causes   have  operated  to  produce  volcanip 


40  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

eruptions  at  very  unequal  periods  ?  Who  has 
kept  a  register  of  the  eruptions  of  any  burning 
mountain,  for  one  thousand  years,  to  say  nothing 
©f  three  or  four  thousand  ?  Who  can  say  that  the 
strata  of  earth  were  forpied  in  equal  periods? 
The  time  for  the  formation  of  the  uppermost  and 
last  is  probably  not  known,  much  less  the  respec- 
tive periods  of  the  lower  strata.  One  might  have 
been  formed  in  a  year,  and  another  in  a  century. 
This  profound  naturalist  is  wholly  ignorant  of  the 
cause  of  any  one  of  these  terreous  strata.  He 
builds  one  hypothesis  on  the  shoulders  of  another, 
and  to  believe  his  whole  argument  requires  strong- 
er faith  than  to  believe  a  miracle.  Faith  in  a 
miracle  rests  on  testiinony ;  but  faith  in  hi« 
scheme  must  be  built  on  an  extreme  desire  t# 
prove  a  falsehood.* 

Sanchoniatho,  although  a  very  ancient  writer  oa 
Egyptian  affairs,  gives  a  very  detailed  account  of 
the  antediluvian  world,  and  of  a  great  variety  of 
particular  affairs  ;  but  for  the  most  part  they  are 
destitute  of  all  rational  probability  and  credit. 
It  is  indeed  probable  that  the  most  valuable  and 
most  ancient  records  of  Egypt  were  burned  in  the 
Alexandrian  library  by  Julius  Caesar. 

In  reviewing  the  topics  passed  over  in  the  pre- 
ceding lecture,  they  will  be  seen  to  assume  three 
important  facts,  against  which  skepticism  is  often 
beard  to  lift  its  voice.  The  creation  of  the  world, 
the  destruction  ot  the  world  by  a  deluge,  and  the 
great  length  of  the  lives  of  the  antediluvians,  are 

*_  There  ia  a  fact  which  overturns  all  Count  Borch's  rea- 
soning :  1  he  lava  which  destroyed  Herculaneum  issued  ia 
the  year  of  Christ  79,  or  about  1 7. A  years  ago.  This  lava  « 
now  covered  with  six  layers  of  lava,  all  ©f  vhioli  are  flepa- 
rated  by  strata  of  ri«h  fertile  soil. 


THE   ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  4^1 

facts  considered  as  resting  on  the  authority  of  the 
Mosaic  history,  or,  rather,  on  the  authority  of  di- 
vine revelation.  Concerning  two  of  these  facts 
enough  has  been  already  said.  As  to  the  doctrine 
of  crea^'on,  if  matter  be  not  eternal  and  selt  ex- 
istent, the  a(  count  Moses  has  given  of  that  great 
event  is  by  far  the  most  simple,  rational,  and 
probable,  judging  of  it  by  the  common  rules  of 
evidence.  Ihe  human  mind  cannot  form  a  con- 
ception of  any  thing  more  exalted,  more  sublime, 
more  becoming  the  greatness  and  glory  of  the 
eternal  God,  than  the  method,  if  I  may  so  call  it, 
stated  by  Moses;  "  In  the  beginning  God  created 
the  heavens  and  the  earth;  and  the  earth  was 
without  form,  and  void;  and  darkness  was  upon 
the  face  of  the  deep  :  and  the  spirit  of  God 
moved  upon  the  face  of  the  waters.  And  God 
said,  let  there  be  light,  and  there  was  light." 

This  last  expression  is  quoted  by  Longinus,  the 
Greek  Rhetorician,  as  a  perfect  instance  of  the 
sublime.  Indeed,  if  Moses'  whole  account  of  the 
creation  be  duly  considered,  it  will  be  found  to  be 
^above  the  powers  and  capacity  of  mortal  man. 
It  bears  the  high  and  unequivocal  stamp  of  truth. 
The  manner  in  which  the  narrative  is  conducted, 
as  w^ell  as  the  facts  stated,  tower  infinitely  above 
the  mean  and  base  imputation  of  fable  and  fic- 
tion— above  the  conceptions  of  poets  and  rhapso- 
dists.  The  evidences  of  the  deluge,  even  were 
the  writings  of  the  Pentateuch  annihilated,  are 
fully  satisfactory.  All  antiquity,  in  China,  India, 
Persia,  Arabia,  Palestine,  Egjpt,  are  full  of  it. 
The  face  of  the  globe  itself  declares  it. 

But  the  very  great  length  of  human  life  before 
the  deluge,  is  commonly  considered  as  resting 
wholly  on  the  credit  of  Bloses'  history.  This, 
4'^ 


42  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

however,  is  far  from  being  tlie  fact,  as  every  scho- 
lar versed  in  Greek  and  Koman  literature  knows. 
The  fable  of  Prometheus,  who  stole  fire  from  hea- 
ven, in  consequence  of  which  the  gods,  offended, 
sent  new  diseases  on  earth  to  cut  short  human 
life,  is  generally  believed  to  refer,  expressly, 
to  the  family  of  ISoah.     It  is  stated  thus  by  Ho- 


''  Audax  lapeii  genus 
Ignemfraude  mala  gentibus  intulit  i 
Post  ignem  (jetherea  domoy 
Subductum  7nacies,  et  novafebrium 
Terris  incubuit  cohors  ; 
Semotique  prius  tarda  necessitas, 
Letlii  corripuit  gradum.''* 


The  impious  race  of  Japhet  bold, 
Stole  fire  from  heaven  in  times  of  old 
The  Gods,  offended  and  surpris'd, 
With  new  disease  mankind  chastis'd  ; 
With  rapid  step  and  surer  blow, 
Approaching  fate,  e'er  while  so  slow, 
Cut  short  the  lives  of  men  below. 


Pliny,  the  philosopher,  says,  concerning  the 
great  longevity  of  the  ancients,  "  When  plea- 
sure began  to  live,  life  itself  expired." 

Man,  though  fallen  and  mortal,  had  he  lived 
according  to  his  better  hopes  and  higher  destiny, 
might,  probably,  have  enjoyed  a  much  longtr 
life  io  this  world.    Had   mankind  never  baT« 


THE  ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLD.  43 

£allen,  it  is  generally  believed  they  would  have 
been  immortal.  This  is  so  far  a  dictate  of  the 
religion  of  nature,  that  all  the  enlightened  hea- 
then moralists  appear  to  have  considered  death  as 
a  consequence  of  wickedness.  They  represent 
virtue  and  goodness  as  immortal.  The  human 
body  was  originally  designed  for  immortality,  as 
well  as  the  mind.  "  Honor  thy  father  and  thy 
mother,  that  thy  days  may  be  long."  Here  is  one 
kind  of  virtue,  even  by  the  divine  law,  connect- 
ed with  long  life.  It  is  probable  that,  even  after 
the  curse  of  mortality  had  taken  place,  the  human 
race  might,  by  a  course  of  virtuous  conduct,  have 
protracted  their  days.  An  experiment,  therefore, 
of  this  nature  was  made,  when  it  fully  appeared 
that  very  long  life  would  scarcely  be  a  privilege, 
either  to  the  good  or  the  bad  ;  and,  by  the  ex- 
treme defection  of  almost  the  whole  race,  man 
forfeited  his  life,  if  I  may  so  say,  over  again,  and 
it  was  cut  down  to  the  dwarfish  size  of  120.  and 
soon,  of  70  years.  Men  abused,  to  such  a  degree, 
their  privilege  of  longevity,  that  it  seemed  like 
casting  pearls  before  swine.  Indeed,  when  we 
consider  what  immense  multitudes  die  in  war,  as 
short  as  life  now  is,  what  truly  vast  numbers  die 
a  voluntary  death,  by  some  destructive  vice, 
however  much  they  fear  death,  one  would  think 
mankind  thought  their  lives  still  too  long. 

The  great  length  of  life,  in  the  first  ages,  must 
have  had  some  connexion  with  that  original 
strength  of  constitution  given  to  man  ;  it  might 
have  been  designed  to  exhibit  a  faint  image  of 
that  flourishing  vigour  and  immortal  youth,  which 
was  to  have  been  the  lot  of  unspotted  virtue  j 
the  last  remains  of  which  were  torn  from  the  race, 
jioi  merely  by  the  fall  of  man,  but  by  an  exorbi- 


4-1  ANCIENT  msToav. 

taut  course  in  actual  vice  and  depravity.  This- 
high  privilege  of  a  long  probation  was  conferred 
on  the  first  generations  of  men,  to  show  the  Crea- 
tor still  benignant,  still  an  indulgent  father,  willing 
to  protract  their  enjoyments  in  this  life,  who  had 
nothing  to  expect  in  the  life  to  coine. 

The  longevity  of  the  first  generations  of  men, 
together  with  its  concomitants,  Avas  not  without 
it3  benefits  to  all  succeeding  generations.  It  gave 
a  ra})idity  to  their  inventions  and  discoveries,  a 
vigour  to  their  conceptions,  a  boldness  to  their 
plans,  of  which  we  can  torm  no  adequate  idea. 
Tliey  laid  the  foundations  of  art  and  science. 
We  call  those  times  rude  uncultivated  ages  of 
barbarity  and  of  darkne.->s.  But,  let  it  be  consi- 
dered what  they  had  to  do,  and  what  they  did. 
Was  Tuba]  Cain  an  instructor  of  every  artificer  in 
brass  and  iron  ?  Who  discovered  iron — found  it 
jn  the  ore—rermc'd  it  from  its  dross?  Did  Noah 
build  the  ark  /  Who  formed  his  tools — taught  hid 
workmen  ?  Consider  the  majesty,  strength,  ex- 
quisiteness,  and  perfection  of  that  building. 

Kad  the  first  generations  of  men  been  as  frail, 
&!iOrt-iivcd,  and  feeblcj  as  men  now  are,  the  y)ro- 
gress  of  art  and  science  must  have  been  slow  in- 
deed. 

The  number  of  the  antediluvians  must  have 
been  very  great.  Admitting  the  human  family  to 
have  doubled  but  once  in  40  years.,  till  the  time 
of  the  deluge,  there  must  have  been  more  than 
two  billions  of  people,  i.  e.  two  millions  of  mil- 
lions. But  of  their  names,  their  exploits,  their 
fame,  there  is  no  memorial.  The  earth  once 
glowed  with  their  labours,  and  groaned  with  their 
wickedness  ;  but  i'hey\,  with  all  the  monuments 
of  dieir  skill  and  p.j,verj  &unk  in  the  remorseless^ 


^HE  ANTEDILUVIAN  WORLB.  45 

I  have  past  over  the  period  proposed  for  tbis 
lecture,  ft  affords  kw  topics  of  minute  detail  ; 
but  where  the  footstep  of  aimighty  Ppovidence 
has  past,  there  are  left  the  traces  of  divine  wis- 
dom ;  and  there  we  may  look  for  useful  instruc- 
fcioa. 


4<^ 

LECTURE  IIL 

Egypt. 


The  eldest  daughter  of  history  will  engage 
your  attention  this  evening.  She  has  often  been 
seen  in  a  richer  dress,  and  surrounded  with  a 
jnore  pompous  train.  Nor  can  you  have  more 
than  a  glimpse  of  her  stately  form  and  youthful 
beauty.  Our  last  lecture  was  spent  in  that  sha- 
dowy region  which  a  (ew  scattered  rays  of  light 
have  scarcely  rescued  from  oblivion  :  in  the  con- 
templation of  events  which  past  "  with  the  yeajs 
beyond  the  flood."  It  was  a  painful  subject,  and 
presented  little  more  to  our  notice,  which  could 
foe  definitely  surveyed,  than  the  sudden  fall  of  a 
world  of  people.  We  were  conducted  by  a  ve- 
nerable guide,  who,  while  she  showed  us  but  iew 
things,  told  us  the  truth. 

When  we  come  on  this  side  the  watery  waste^ 
'^  guide  of  a  different  character  offers  her  servi- 
ces :  I  mean  the  historic  muse.  Nearest  to  her 
lofty  tower  lie  the  fields  of  modern  Europe, 
They  are  wide,  elevated,  and  diversified  with 
every  kind  of  prospect.  The  genius  of  war,  ever 
jready  to 

**  Whelm  nations  in  blood  and  wrap  cities  in  fire," 

reigns  in  modern  Europe.  A  little  further  off, 
and  retired  under  a  heavier  shade,  lie  the  ages  of 
Oothic   dayknesSi      Through  these  she  conduqt^ 


you  to  the  elevated  destinies,  and  imperial  gran- 
deur of  ancient  Rome.     Like  the  Alps  amons  or- 
dinary hills  and  valleys,  she  towers  above  all  na- 
tions, and  for  ages  gives  law  to  the  world.     YoU 
see  her  an  empire,  a  republic^  a  kingdom,  a  clan. 
Still  further  back,  you  behold  a  wonderful  people, 
of  less  sullen  majesty,  but  of  more  brilliance  of 
intellect  and  vigour  of  genius:  there  the    temple 
of  science  displayed  its  fair  columns,  and  expanded 
its  majestic  portal?.     Still  far  distant  beyond  the^ 
Greeks,  you  behold  the  Persians,  the  Assyrians, 
the  Egyptians,  each  flourishing  in  their  day,  and 
filling  remoter  grounds  of  the  receding  prospect. 
Between  these  nations  and  the  deluge,  there  i^ 
still  a  wide  expanse,  through  which  the   Mosaic- 
history  has  drawn  a  single  line,  like  a  thread  of 
silver,  without  breadth.      But  here  the   historic 
muse    gives  you   her  perspective,  and   bids  yo« 
make  the  best  of  what  you  can  see.     You  see  he- 
roes and  giants,  and  gods   and  demons,  blended 
in  a  scene  which  declares  itself  to  be  fabulous  ; 
and  you  perceive  yourself  to  be   in  the  heroic 
ages.      The   traditionary   tales,  the  fables,    the 
mythological  fictions  of  the  Romans,  Greeks,  and 
Egyptians,    lie  here.       Here    are    the   exploits 
of  Theseus,  the  labours   of  Hercules,  the  live? 
and  actions  of  those  men  whom  credulous  and  su- 
perstitious nations  deified  and  adored. 

The  country  of  Egypt  occupies  the  northeastern 
corner  of  the  continent  of  Africa  ;  is  between  five 
and  six  hundred  miles  long,  and  from  fifty  to  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  broad.  The  territory  is 
long  and  narrow,  though  of  very  unequal  breadth ; 
an(f  the  river  Nile,  passing  from  south  to  north, 
runs  through  the  plains  of  Egypt,  and  falls  into 
the  Mediterranean  sea  by  several  mouths.  It  ia 
tisflally  bosnde'd  ob  the  north  by  the  Mediterra* 


48  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

nean  sea,  on  the  east  by  the  isthmus  of  Suez  and 
the  Red  Sea,  on  the  south  by  iEthiopia,  and  on 
the  west  by  Lybia.  It  extends  from  the  latitude 
81**  north,  nearly  to  the  tropic  of  Cancer.  The 
southern  parls  of  Egypt  have  an  almost  vertical 
sun,  in  the  sommer  montiis. 

hain  seldom  falls  in  Eo;ypt.  The  sky  is  gene- 
rally serene  in  every  part  of  the  year,  and  the 
power  of  the  sun,  from  May  to  September,  is  op- 
pressive ;  yet  the  climate  of  Egypt,  especially 
as  it  anciently  was,  is  perhaps  excelled  by  few- 
parts  of  the  earth.  The  defect  of  rain  is  compen- 
sated by  copious  dews  ;  and  the  lands  bordering 
on  the  Nile  are  enriched  by  its  inundations  to 
a  surprising  degree.  Dr.  Clarke,  a  late  scientific 
and  judicious  traveller,  who  was  in  Egypt  during 
the  invasion  of  Bonaparte,  observes,  that  bad  as 
the  civil  and  moral  state  of  Egypt  now  is,  it  far 
surpassed  all  his  former  conceptions  of  luxuriancy 
of  vegetation,  and  fertility  of  soil.  And  I  beg 
here  to  be  allowed  to  recommend  his  travels 
through  Asia  Minor,  Palestine,  and  Egypt,  to  such 
as'wish  for  information  relative  to  those  countries. 
His  narrative  is  simple,  judicious,  and  elegant^ 
and  shows  the  hand  of  a  master. 

The  ancient  power  and  grandeur  of  Egypt 
was  owing  greatly  to  its  extent  of  commerce.  An 
attentive  consideration  of  the  map  of  the  globe 
will  show  that  Cairo,  Alexandria,  and  Memphis, 
were,  perhaps,  situated  for  a  grander  scale  of 
commerce  than  any  other  great  cities  not  except- 
ing Constantinople  or  London.  From  Alexan- 
dria, a  sail  of  ten  days  brought  fhem,  with  ease, 
into  the  Grecian  islands  of  i\:e  Archipelaao.  Ten 
days  more  carried  them  through  the  Hellespont 
and  Strait  of  Bosphorus  into  the  Black  fcJea, 
whose   great   rivers,  Boristhenes,    Tanais    an^ 


EGYVT.  49 

others,  collected  the  inland  trade  of  centra]  Asia 
and  northern  Europe.  West  of  this  grand  emno- 
rium,  lay  ail  the  northern  shores  of  llie  Mediter- 
ranean, comprising  the  south  of  Spain,  and  f 'ranee, 
and  Italy,  and  the  Islands  ;  and  the  southern  shores 
of  the  same  sea,  the  northern  coast  of  Africa. 
Besides,  but  a  little  distance  from  Alexandria, 
east,  over  land,  lay  the  ports  of  the  Red  Sea, 
some  of  which  had  become  famous  in  the  days  of 
Solomon  and  David.  From  Ezion«Geber,  or  Be- 
renice, as  it  was  afterwards  called,  the  Tyrians, 
Jews,  and  other  nations,  anciently,  and  the  mer- 
chants of  Palmyra,  in  latter  times,  carried  on  an 
immensely  rich  trade.  From  the  ports  of  the  Red 
Sea  through  the  Straits  of  BabehMandel,  a  few 
"weeks,  and  a  safe  voyage,  brought  them  to  India 
and  all  its  rich  islands. 

These  advantages  were  perceived  by  the  per- 
vading mi^d  of  Alexander  the  Great,  who  built 
Alexandria.  Nor  was  he  deceived ;  for  in  twenty 
years  after  he  founded  this  city,  which  was  to 
bear  his  name,  it  became  the  greatest  emporium 
of  trade  upon  earth.  Whatever  is  known  of  the 
fertility  of  Egypt  in  our  own  times,  it  was  once 
far  more  teriile  and  pleasant  than  it  is  now.  It 
appears,  from  various  observations,  that  the  sands 
of  the  African  deserts  are  gradually  spreading  fur- 
ther north,  and  intrenching  more  and  more  on  the 
states  of  Barbary.  Probably  the  indolence  and 
vice  of  those  nations  invite  the  empire  of  sand, 
and  hiisfcn  its  dominion,  by  neglecting  their  soil, 
and  1-iying  it  open  to  the  desert. 

What  settlers  first  arrived  in  Egypt  after  the 
deluge,  it  is  impossible  to  say.  I  shall,  however, 
follow  the  general  opinions  of  ancient  writers  on 
this  subject,  and  consider  the  kingdom  of  Egypt 
as  founded  by  Menes,  or  Misrainij  the  grandson 


56  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

of  Noah,  one  hundred  and  sixty  years  after  the 
deluge.  And  from  this  datum  shall  submit  to 
your  consideration  the  following 

Analysis  of  the  History  of  Egypt. 

The  history  of  Egypt,  as  far  as  regards  the  pre- 
sent plan  of  Lectures,  may  be  divided  into  three 
periods. 

I.  From  the  foundation  of  the  monarchy  by 
Menes,  160  years  after  the  flood,  to  the  end  of 
the  reign  of  Psammenitus,  who  was  conquered  by 
Cambyses,  king  of  Persia.  This  period  contains- 
1663  years.  During  this  time,  Egypt  was  go-- 
verned  by  dynasties  of  its  native  princes  ;  in  the 
scriptures  generally  called  Pharaohs. 

II.  From  the  death  of  Psammenitus,  A.  C.  525i^ 
to  the  death   of  Alexander  the  great,  A.  C.  321.^ 
This   period  contains  204  years  :   during  which 
time  the  Egyptian  history  is  involved  with  that 
of  the  Persians  and  Greeks. 

III.  From  the  death  of  Alexander,  A.  C.  321. 
to  the  death  of  Cleopatra,  Queen  of  Egypt,  A.  C. 
.20  years.  This  period  contains  301  years.  At 
this  lime  Egypt  becomes  a  Roman  province. 

Egypt  remained  a  province  of  the  eastern  Ro- 
man empire,  and  was  subject  to  Constantinople,  till 
it  was  seized  by  Omar,  the  third  caliph  of  the 
Saracens,  in  the  year  of  Christ  640  :  the  seat  of 
his  empire  was  Babylon.  This  dynasty  of  prin- 
ces continued  till  the  year  870,  when  the  Egyp- 
tians set  up  a  caliph  of  their  own,  to  whom  the 
Saracens  of  Spain  and  Africa  were  subject.  But 
the  government  of  Egypt  was  soon  after  seized 
by  the  governors  or  sultans  of  Babylon  and  Cairo; 
and  the  authority  of  caliphs  or  priest';  w^«  n.bo= 
lishedc 


EGYPT.  51 

in  1160  Assarredin,  general  of  Norradin,  sultan 
of  Damascus,  subdued  the  kingdom  of  Egypt, 
and  usurped  the  government  of  it.  His  son  Sala- 
din  conquered  Mesopotamia,  Palestine,  Damas- 
cus, and,  in  the  year  1190  took  Jerusalem  from 
the  Christians.  This  prince  formed  a  military 
corps  composed  of  boys  taken  in  war,  chiefly 
from  Christian  nations,  and  also  purchased  of  the 
Tartars.  These  youths,  trained  to  severe  labour 
and  strict  discipline,  formed,  in  time,  a  powerful 
army  ;  and  they  were  called  Mamalukes,  which 
word  signifies  slave.  The  Janizaries,  afterwards 
formed  by  the  Turkish  emperors,  were  procured 
and  trained  much  in  the  same  manner. 

These  Mamalukes  became  the  scourge  and  ter- 
ror of  the  times  in  which  they  lived,  till,  in  1242, 
they  set  one  of  their  number  on  the  throne  of 
Egypt.  The  Mamalukes  governed  Egypt  till 
1601,  when  they  were  conquered  by  Selimus  II. 
emperor  of  the  Ottoman  Turks.  Since  that  time 
Egypt  has  been  a  Turkish  province,  governed 
by  a  viceroy  from  Constantinople. 

I  have  been  the  more  particular  on  the  latter 
articles  of  this  analysis  of  Egyptian  history,  a.s, 
lying  beyond  the  plan  of  these  lectures,  it  will 
not  be  touched  again. 

Such  is  the  great  outline  of  the  history  of 
Egypt.  And  here,  give  me  leave  to  observe,  iti^ 
the  outline,  the  grand  contour  of  objects  which 
impresses  the  eye  and  tiie  mind.  A  cast  of  the 
eye  on  a  map  gives  more  geographical  informa- 
tion than  many  hours  of  mere  abstract  reflection. 
A  correct  outline  may  easily  be  filled  up  ;  but 
without  such  an  outline,  there  can  be  no  image  in 
the  mind. 

There  is  not  a  regular  account  of  the  rise  and 
progress  of  Egypt,   into  a  kingdom,  to  be   found 


52  ANCIENT  HISTOE.Y. 

in  history,  on  which  full  reliance'caa  w placed, 
The  expanded  narratives  of  Eerodo'us  and  Dio- 
dorus  open  before  us  a  wide  fiek'  J  conjecture. 
in  which  are  interspersed  nianj  i\-iportant  facts. 
But  Egypt  5rst  comes  to  our  '-ind  in  history  a 
powerful  monarchy,  full  of  peor"e,  of  prodigious 
wealth  ;  learned,  superstitious,  aadaiignst. 

In  the  emigrations  of  Noah's  family  after  the 
deluge,  it  seems  rather  probable  to  me  that  they 
pnrsued  such  courses  as  they  had  had  some  know- 
ledge of  before  the  deluge.  I  am  not  able  to  con- 
Tince  myself  that  the  features  of  the  globe  were 
wholly  changed,  and  formed  anew,  by  that  great 
calamity.  You  will  recollect  that  it  13  said  thre 
flood  rose  fifteen  fathoms  above  the  tops  of  the 
highest  mountains  ;  which  implies  that  there  werfe 
mountains  before  the  deluge.  And  surely  the  ori- 
ginal formation  of  the  earth's  surface  into  hills  and 
valleys,  mountains  and  plains,  is  a  supposition 
more  consistent  Vv'ith  heabh  and  pleasantness.  A 
large  section  of  Noah's  family  probably  spread 
westward  to  the  Mediterranean  sea,  and,  following 
that  shore  south  through  the  Isthmus  of  Suez,  ar- 
rived on  the  banks  of  the  Nile.  It  is  impossible 
to  say  whether  Ham,  the  second  son  of  Noah^ 
conducted  this  settlement  in  company  with  Mr5' 
raim,  his  son  ;  but  it  is  certain  that  Egypt  was  an- 
ciently called  the  land  of  Ham  :  and  by  the  Ara- 
bians and  others  it  is  stil!  called  the  land  of  MesrieJ 
from  Mis  raim,  its  first  king. 

The  arts  and  sciences  weresoe^rly  in  Egypt 
that  it  is  impossible  to  #void  the  opinion  that  they 
were  brought,  by  the  second  [ounfieri  of  the  -la- 
man  race,  from  beyond  Ihe  flc^>d.  The  first  'rig 
distin2:uishc;d  in  bisto/y  .liiin-  Mr-^ncs,  or  Mi  ,m, 
is  Bn<;ris.  \w'm-  'u;:!  t!;-  •  ;<,  of  "  hcbes,  ii:  "l.  ^.per 
Egypt.'    This  city  is  rendeied  famous  b'y  the  pea 


EGYPT.  5^- 

&f  Homer,  whose  general  accuracy  in  geographi- 
cal description  renders  his  account  worthy  of 
more  credit  than  is  generally  due  to  epic  poe- 
try.      * 

The  Greek  and  Roman  writers  of  ancient  his- 
tory celebrate  its  greatness  :  Strabo  says,  that 
Thebes  had  an  hundred  gates,  from  each  of  which 
she  was  able  to  send  out  two  hundred  chariots  and 
ten  thousand  men  ;  which,  in  the  whole,  would  be 
20)000  chariots,  and  two  millions  of  men.  An- 
cient Egypt  lay  in  three  divisions  :  Lower  Egypt, 
or  the  Delta,  as  the  Greeks  called  it,  because  sha- 
ped like  their  D,  lay  next  to  the  Mediterranean 
sea,  and  was  formed  into  that  shape  by  the  branch- 
ing of  the  river  Nile.  The  ancient  capital  of 
this  was  Heliopolis  (city  of  the  sun.)  Middle 
Egypt  lays  south  of  this.  Its  capital  was  Mem- 
phis, very  anciently  ;  and  afterwards  Cairo,  which 
rose  out  of  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  Memphis, 
which  stood  on  the  west,  as  Cairo  stands  on 
the    east  side  of   the  Nile. 

The  southern  division  of  Egypt,  which  lay 
bordering  on  Ethiopia,  at  first  made  the  most 
splendid  figure  in  history;  and  Thebes,  allowing 
half  for  exaggeration,  must  have  been  a  greater 
city  than  is  now  in  Europe. 

During  the  fitst  period  of  Egyptian  history, 
mentioned  in  the  preceding  analysis,  the  reigns 
of  nearly  thirty  princes  are  mentioned,  but  not 
in  the  exact  order  of  succession ;  that,  with  ma- 
ny other  things,  is  buried  in  the  oblivion  of  an- 
tiquity. Th£  first  distinguished  event,  in  this 
period  of  1,668  years,  was  the  invasion  of  Egypt 
hy  the  she}Tlierd  kings. 

I.  The  invasion  of  the  shepherd  kings  is  but  very 
imperfectly  known.       The    ablest    chionologers 
and  historiaRs  differ  essentially  as  tg  tUe  time 
5* 


5-4.  AJfCTENt  HISTORY. 

when  that  event  took  place.  Rollin  and  Bed- 
ford, and,  I  believe,  Dr.  Clarke  and  Prideaux, 
place  this  invasion  about  2,084  years  before 
Christ,  or  about  a  centurj  after  the  reij^i  of  Me= 
ftes.  These  pastoral  invaders  were  from  the  ad- 
^cent  countries  of  Asia,  from  Arabia  and  Pales- 
tine, and,  it  is  generaNj  believed,  from  the  land  of 
Canaan.  It  was  about  this  time  that  Abraham,  the 
renowned  patriarch,  arrived  in  Egypt,  v/ilh  his 
beautiful  consort,  Sarah>  the  fame  of  whose  beau- 
ty had  attracted  the  notice  of  the  king  of  Egypt. 
But  the  sequel  of  that  simple  and  eloquent  story, 
as  related  in  the  book  of  Genesis,  showed  Pharaoh 
to  have  been  under  the  influence  of  a  purer  mo?alr- 
ty  than  usually  governs  arbitrary  and  despotic 
princes. 

But  from  the  history  of  Abraham,  it  appears 
that  shepherds  in  those  days  were  both  pov/- 
erful  and  opulent.  Abraham,  with  his  three 
friends,  and  their  collected  train  of  servants,  were 
able  to  pursue  and  rout  an  army  corar^^ianded  by 
several  kings.  The  shepherd's  occupation  was 
then  great  and  honourable,  ai^d  i^  was  by  a  con- 
federation of  powerful  pastoral  princes  that  Egypt 
was  at  length  invaded,  and  all  Lower  Egypt  sub- 
dued. These  shepherd  kings  were  followed  by 
a  hardy,  robust,  and  warlike  race  of  men,  whom 
the  dangers  of  the  wilderness  had  rendered  brave 
and  active,  and  frequent  encounters  with  the 
fiercest  of  the  beasts  of  the  forest,  had  made  skil- 
ful in  the  use  of  arms. 

The  people  settled  on  the  luxuj^ous  plains  of 
^e  Nile  were,  indeed,  numerous,  but  ease  and 
abundance  had  made  them  eifemfnate.  And 
what  nation  can  resist  the  fascinations  of  wealth, 
QT  the  circean  cup  of  luxury  ?  We  have  before  us 
the  uause  ©f  the  downfall  of  all  the  powerful  na- 


tions  of  antiquity.  Luxurious  wealth  cannot  con- 
tend with  absteinious  poverty.  Idleness  must 
fall  before  industry,  and  indolence  before  activi- 
ty. Th^  shepherds  of  Palestine,  or,  which  is  the 
^ame  thing,  the  Philistines,  invaded  and  conquer- 
ed  Lower  Egypt,  and  remained  in  possession  of 
that  fertile  region  260  years. 

IL  The  second  important  event  which  falls  un- 
der this  period  of  Egyptian  history,  relates  to  its 
Connexion  with  the  history  of  the  Hebrews;  I 
mean  the  removal  of  the  family  of  the  patriarch 
Jacob  into  Egypt.  This  event,  according  to 
Archbishop  Usher,  took  place  in  the  year  before 
Christ  1706.  We  are  deprived  of  the  pleasure 
of  knowing  the  name,  otherwise  than  by  the  ge- 
neral appellation  of  Pharaoh,  of  that  great  and 
amiable  prince  v/ho  treated  the  chosen  family 
with  such  beneficent  hospitality.  But  in  this  lit- 
tle portion  of  history,  furnished  in  the  sacred 
writings,  there  is  an  interesting  display  of  ancient 
life  and  manners.  It  appears  that  Pharaoh,  who 
filled  the  throne  of  Egypt  when  Abraham  visited 
that  country,  was  a  prince  of  most  exemplary 
moral  virtue  :  when  he  discovered  that  Sarah,  in- 
stead of  being  the  sister,  was  the  wife  of  Abra- 
ham, he  restored  her  to  her  husband,  with  a  most 
respectful  and  affectionate  apology  for  the  error 
into  which  he  had  fallen.  There  is,  indeed,  very 
satisfactory  and  delightful  evidence  that  the  na- 
tions both  of  Africa  and  Asia,  at  that  period,  were 
not  sunk  into  that  deplorable  state  of  depravity 
and  vice  which  became  so  flagrant  in  subsequent 
ages.  The  strictest  inquiry  into  that  early  pe- 
riod results  in  abundant  evidence  that  idolatry- 
had  not  yet  become  general ;  but  of  this  we  shali 
have  Occasion  to  speak  in  a  subsequent  lecture. 

When  Joseph  was  s©ld  a  slave  ioto  Egypt,  ii 


QQ  ANCIENT  HrSTORY. 

will  be  recollected  by  what  a  peculiar  train  of 
circumstances  his  triumphant  virtue  first  carried 
him  to  the  depth  of  a  dungeon,  and  thence  lifted 
him  near  to  the  throne  of  the  monarch.  Pharaoh, 
on  this  occasion,  showed  all  that  sensibility  to 
merit,  that  high  respect  for  divine  providence, 
that  fear  of  God,  and  belief  in  his  just  and  equal 
government,  that  might  be  looked  for  in  an  amia- 
ble and  virtuous  prince.  He  immediately  sends 
to  Jacob,  the  venerable  patriarch,  inviting  him  to 
remove,  with  his  family  and  effects,  into  the  most 
fruitful  and  pleasant  part  of  Egypt.  Jacob  ac- 
cepted the  generous  offer,  and  was  received,  by 
the  king  and  all  his  subjects,  with  every  mark  of 
kindness. 

Nor  did  this  kindness  receive  the  least  remis- 
sion during  the  reign  of  this  noble  monarch  ;  nor, 
as  we  can  learn,  during  the  life  of  Joseph  orj)f 
his  brethren.  When  Jacob  was  brought  before 
Pharaoh,  and  told  him  that  he  was  a  shepherd, 
the  sacred  historian  remarks,  that  every  shepherd 
was  an  abomination  to  the  Egyptians.  This,  it 
is  believed,  was  owing  to  the  former  wars  and 
depredations  of  the  shepherd  kings  who  subjuga- 
ted lower  Egypt,  as  already  noticed.  There 
seems  to  be  an  allusion  to  the  same  thing  when 
Joseph,  in  the  course  of  his  experiment,  insinu- 
ated that  his  brethren  might  be  spies.  It  is  in- 
troduced as  a  familiar  idea — as  an  event  that  was 
very  common  m  those  times,  "  Or  else,  by  the 
life  of  Pharaoh,  ye  are  spies." 

According  to  Usher,  the  oppression  of  the 
Hebrews  commenced  about  130  years  after 
Jacob  removed  into  Egypt,  when  a  new  king  had 
arisen  that  knew  not  Joseph.  This,  the  kame 
■  learned  author  supposes  to  be  Rameses-Miamun. 
The  policy  of  this  inhuman  monster,  to  prevent 


EGYPT.  57 

Ihe  increase  of  the  Hebrew  nation,  hy  drowning 
their  male  children,  gave  the  life  and  fortunes  of 
Moses,  the  great  lawgiver  of  the  Hebrews,  their 
peculiar  turn.  Thermutis,  Pharaoh's  only  daugh- 
ter, and  heir  to  his  throne,  finding  Bloses  wrapt 
m  his  little  rushy  ark,  ready  to  be  swallowed  up 
by  the  Nile,  or  devoured  by  the  monstrous 
crocodiles  which  infest  that  river,  took  him  up, 
and,  moved  by  his  uncommon  beauty,  and  per- 
suasive tears,  she  preserved  him,  and  ultimately 
adopted  him  as  her  son.  Yet,  according  to  the 
opinion  of  Josephus,  the  Jewish  historian,  Moses 
was  early  apprised  of  his  high  and  arduous 
destiny.  When  he  had  grown  to  be  a  child  of 
some  size,  Pharaoh  one  day  called  Moses  into 
his  presence,  told  him  he  had  adopted  him  as  the 
son  of  his  daughter,  and  set  the  gorgeous  crown 
of  Egypt  on  his  head,  heavy  with  gem's  and  gold. 
Moses",  actuated  by  some  unknown  impulse, 
threw  the  crown  disdainfully  on  the  ground,  and 
set  his  foot  on  it.  The  magicians,  from  this,  pre- 
dicted that  Moses  should  one  day  humble  the 
monarch  of  Egypt. 

Their  prediction  was  verified,  though  not  in 
the  reign  of  this  monarch.  Amenophis,  the  son 
and  successor  of  Miamun,  in  attempting  to  pur- 
sue the  Israelites  through  the  Red  Sea,  v/as  there 
destroyed  with  all  his  army. 

III. "^The  reign  and  conquests'ofSesostris  forms, 
hy  far,  the  most  splendid  ssra  of  this  period  of 
Egyptian  history.  Were  it  possible  to  place  full 
confidence  in  the  accounts  given  of  this  great 
monarch,  we  should  see  abundant  matter  of  the 
hii^hest  admiration.  But  it  must  not  be  con- 
cealed that  it  is  doubtful,  whether  Sesostris^  was 
the  father  or  the  son  of  that  prince  who  perished 
iii  the  Red  Sea,     The  latter  opinion  was  adoptei^ 


58  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

by  Archbishop  Usher.  In  his  reign,  all  Egypt 
was  united  under  one  head.  To  give  a  digjiity 
to  the  birth  of  this  prince,  all  the  male  children, 
born  the  same  day  with  him,  were  brought  to 
court,  and  educated  in  the  style  of  the  noblest 
princes.  They  were  iniired  to  the  severest  ex- 
ercises and  greatest  hardships,  that  they  might 
be  prepared  for  war,  and  they  were  educated 
with  a  view  to  presiding  in  counsels,  governing 
provinces,  and  commanding  armies. 

Whilst  he  was  on  an  expedition  against  the 
Arabians,  his  father  died,  and  imniediately,  it  is 
said,  he  formed  the  vast  design  of  conquering  the 
world.  This  was  about  the  year  1491  before 
Christ.  The  oSicers  of  his  army  were  formed 
Out  of  those  youths  who  had  been  educated  with 
him,  trained  to  every  martial  exercise,  and  in- 
spired with  the  love  of  glory.  He  first  subjugated 
the  most  considerable  nations  of  Africa,  and 
made  tbem  tributal^y. 

A  flee^  of  400  sail  was  equipped,  and  hastened 
down  tiie  Red  Sea,  the  ports  and  shores  of  which 
he  took  care  to  secure  ;  and,  after  vast  prepara- 
tions, he  moved  into  Asia,  through  the  Isthmus  of 
Suez,  with  an  army  of  six  hundred  thousand 
foot,  tweqiy-seven  thousand  chariots,  and  twenty 
thousand  horse.  How  this  immense  army  could 
be  supported  in  a  march  to  India  beyond  the 
Ganges,  the  writers  of  history  must  leave  for 
their  readers  to  discover,  if  tliey  can.  Herodo- 
tus declares,  that  in  every  part  of  Asia  Minor  he 
saw  the  monuments  of  the  victories  of  Sesostris. 
History  makes  him  victorious  wherever  iie  went. 
He  returned,  at  length,  to  Egypt,  enriched  with 
the  spoils  of  the  most  opulent  nations  in  the 
world,  together  with  an  immense  multitude  of 
captives.     Sesostris  drew  a  plan  of  his  marches 


?:gypt.  69 

:and  encampments ;  and  this,  it  is  believed,  was 
the  first  attempt  of  any  thing  like  a  general  map 
that  ever  was  made.  Eratosthenes,  the  first 
Grecian  geographer,  was  aided  by  this  rude  out- 
line of  Sesostris.  The  name  of  Sesostris  is 
ranked  with  those  of  Hercules,  Bacchus,  Semi- 
ramis,  Cyrus,  Alexander,  Genghis  Khan,  and 
Tamerlane,  each  of  which,  in  their  day,  march- 
ed through  these  countries,  spreading  misery  and 
desolation,  covered  their  souls  with  the  blood  of 
millions,  and  seemed  determined  to  wrest  from 
death  himself  his  legitimate  title  o(  king  of  terrors. 

The  reign  of  this  great  prince  was  long,  and 
marked  with  signal  prosperity.  It  is  recorded, 
to  his  honour,  that  he  was  as  mild  and  benignant  to 
his  subjects  as  he  was  terrible  to  his  enemies  ; 
and  though  he  filled  Egypt  with  splendid  mpnu- 
ments  of  his  power,  he  imposed  no  labour  nor 
exorbitant  exactions  on  his  subjects.  His  charac- 
ter, drawn  by  the  amiable  Fenelon,  in  his  Te- 
lemachus,  is  one  of  the  finest  productions  of  the 
pen,  and  is  not  excelled  by  that  of  any  prince  in 
^ctitious  poetry. 

IV.  If  we  except  Sesostris,  the  ancient  kings  of 
Egypt  were  not  remarkable  as  warriors.  Their 
Successive  reigns  were,  however,  distinguished  by 
those  stupendous  monuments  which  have  been 
able  to  resist  the  rage  of  elements,  the  desolations 
of  war,  and  the  lapse  of  numerous  years.  Very 
many  of  them  still  triumph  over  time  and  decay, 
and,  for  any  thing  we  can  discover,  might  last  a 
thousand  ages.  But  in  viewing  these  lofty  re- 
mains of  antiquity,  we  are  led  to  reflect  on  the 
mind,  temper,  and  genius  of  the  people  by  whom 
they  were  constructed.  Egypt  is  very  beauti- 
fully styled  the  cradle  of  science  :  and  the  Egyp- 
tians were  a  stately,  grave,  contemplative  peo- 


60  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

pie.  Their  ideas  of  dignity  bordered  on  solem- 
nity and  superstition.  A  gloomy  grandeur  over- 
spread their  minds,  which  were  fond  of  mystery, 
religion,  and  especially  of  the  occult  sciences  of 
astrology  and  divination. 

The  kings  of  Egypt,  who  were  so  profuse  of 
their  monuments,  and  filled  the  kingdom  with 
temples,  towers,  obelisks,  pyramids,  and  laby- 
rinths, were  not  unmindful  of  objects  of  national 
advantage.  The  extensive  plains  about  the  Nile 
Ihey  cut  into  numberless  canals,  artificial  lakes, 
and  reservoirs  of  water.  While,  at  the  same  time, 
with  mounds  and  banks  they  secured  their  gar- 
dens and  plantations  from  a  surplus  of  water.  The 
finest  wheat,  perhaps,  in  the  world,  was  raised  on 
these  rich  plains,  and  is  still  raised  there  ;  for 
Egypt  is,  at  this  day,  considered  as  the  granary 
of  Constantinople.  Their  flax  was  anciently 
much  celebrated.  The  fine  linen  of  Egypt  was 
famous  to  a  proverb.  They  took  the  lead  in  this 
article,  as  much  as  Holland  and  Flanders  have  in 
modern  Europe. 

V.  From  the  reign  of  Sesostris  the  Egyptian 
monarchy  rather  declined  in  power  and  sp4en- 
dour ;  and  in  the  latter  periods  of  the  Assyrian 
empire,  it  was  partially,  if  not  wholly,  subjected 
to  Babylon,  though  not  permanently.  Egypt 
preserved  its  independence  till  in  the  reign  of 
Cambyses,  the  son  and  successor  of  the  great 
Cyrus.  Invaded  by  that  prince,  it  made  a  feeble 
resistance,  and  Psammenitus  was  taken  with  his 
capital,  Memphis,  and  Egypt  became  a  province 
of  the  Persiart  empire  ;  in  which  state  it  remained 
204  years. 

This  forms  the  second  period  of  Egyptian  his- 
tory. On  this  I  shall  say  very  little.  A  nation, 
Acting  as  a  satellite  to  a  guperior  power,  is  not 


EGYPl*.  61 

..uled  by  its  own  authority,  nor  conducted  by  its 
own  energies,  and  is  no  longer  itself.  Indeed, 
the  most  correct  and  ample  narratives  of  those  re- 
mote times. are  blended  with  hypothesis  and  ob- 
scurity. Dr.  Gillies  justly  remarks,  that  Philip, 
king  of  Macedon,  is  the  first  monarch  of  ancient 
times  whose  civil  and  political  history  is  well' 
known.  Egjpt,  during  the  period  before  us, 
presents  us  with  the  struggles  and  conflicts  of  the 
Greeks  and  Persians  for  empire.  This  great  con- 
test was  terminated  and  closed  in  the  triumpjj 
and  death  of  Alexander.  Conquest,  in  ancient 
times,  was  more  easily  made  and  lost  than  at  the 
present  day.  The  Egyptians,  in  the  troubles 
that  succeeded  the  short  and  disastrous  I'eign  of 
Cambyses,  revolted  and  threw  off  the  Per.siau 
yoke  ;  nor  were  they  fully  reduced  and  provin- 
ciated till  in  the  second  year  of  the  reign  of 
Xerxes  the  Great,  484  years  before  Christ.  About 
40  years  after  the  partial  conquest  of  Cambyses, 
Xerxes  the  Great  marched  into  i^gy})t,  completed 
the  conquest  of  that  once  flourishing  kingdom,  and 
teduced  it  to  a  state  of  extreme  bondage  and  de- 
pression. Eighteen  years  after  this,  tiie  Egj^p- 
tians  were  aided  in  another  revolt  by  the  Athe- 
nians, having  made  Inarus,  prince  of  Lybia,  their 
king.  Artaxerxes,  who  was  then  on  the  throne  oi 
Persia,  after  losing  one  great  army,  reduced  them 
©nee  more  to  a  state  of  abject  submission. 

Thus,  during  a  long  period,  while  the  energies 
of  the  Persian  empire  were  wasting  aw^ay,  this 
unhappy  people  made  successive  attempts  to  re- 
gain their  freedom.  But  we  shall  pass  over  this 
unpleasant  period,  and  proceed  immediately  to 
the  Grecian  dynasty,  in  which  this  famous  peo" 
pie  rose  once  more  to  dignity,  honour,  and  inde- 
pendence, la  the  partition  of  JUexander's  exten- 
6 


$%  ANCIENT    HISTORR. 

sive  dominions,  Egypt  fell  to  Ptolemy.  This  ce- 
lebrated prince  and  accomplished  general  was 
one  of  the  four  great  officers  who  shared  the  spoils 
of  the  world,  which  had  been  laid  at  the  feet  of 
Alexander.  There  are  few  princes  mentioned 
whose  history  abounds  with  more  interesting 
events:  his  whole  life  may  be  said  to  have  been 
a  series  of  great  actions.  He  was  considered,  by 
historians,  as  the  natural  son  of  Philip,  king  of 
Macedon.  Educated  in  the  same  court  with 
Alexander,  and  personally  attached  to  him,  he 
resembled  him  in  bravery,  but  was  less  cruel 
and  ambitious.  In  the  conquest  of  Persia  and 
India,  he  attended  Alexander,  and  was  generally 
near  his  person,  i[i  every  form  of  danger.  He 
slew  one  of  the  kings  of  India  with  his  own  hand, 
and  was  instrumental  in  taking  the  rock  Ornus, 
always  before  deemed  impregnable. 

This  prince  brought  with  him  a  great  accession 
of  territory  to  the  Egyptian  monarchy,  although 
not  remarkably  ambitious  of  conquest.  His  reign 
was  equally  long  and  prosperous  ;  and  he  had 
the  art  of  uniting  the  glory  and  happiness  of  his 
subjects  with  his  own  fame.  Nor  were  the  Egyp- 
tians less  happy  in  his  successor,  Ptolemy  Phila- 
delphus.  This  monarch  restored  Egypt  to  its  an- 
cient ascendancy  over  all  kingdoms,  as  a  school 
of  philosophy  and  science.  By  the  assistance  of 
the  celebrated  Demetrius  Phalereus,  he  formed 
by  far  the  noblest  library  the  world  ever  saw  :  in 
the  destruction  of  which,  in  the  time  of  Julius 
Caesar,  the  interests  of  literature  sustained  an  irre- 
parable, as  well  as  an  incomparable  loss. 

The  dynasty  of  the  Ptolemies,  from  the  acces- 
sion of  Ptolemy  (Soter,  as  he  was  surnamed)  till 
the  death  of  Cleopatra,  continued  upwards  of  290 
years,  the  whole  of  which  period  coroprehepded 


but  eleven  reigns*  The  Ptolemies  must  have 
reigned,  on  an  average,  27  years ;  probably,  the 
longest  average  reigns  known  in  history.  Whilst 
this  must  be  regarded  as  an  evidence  of  the  heal- 
thiness of  Egypt  in  those  times,  it  also  proves 
the  equanimity,  mildness,  and  prudence  of  the 
kings  and  people  of  Egypt.  Yet,  during  this  pe- 
riod of  their  history,  their  power,  importance, 
and  felicity,  underwent  a  great  and  evident  de- 
cline. 

The  fortunes  of  this  ancient  and  powerful  peo- 
ple were  now  verging  towards  their  last  and  in- 
terminable decline.  The  nations  whom  th* 
Greeks  conquered  were  made  better ;  those  con^ 
quered  by  the  Romans  were  utterly  ruined.  Af- 
ter the  two  first  Ptolemies,  no  one  of  that  race  of 
princes  was  distinguished  by  any  very  remarka- 
ble virtue  or  excellence.  Several  of  them  were 
remarkable  for  nothing  but  their  vices. 

The  unfortunate  Cleopatra,  thought  by  some 
to  have  been  the  most  accomplished  and  fascina- 
ting woman  in  all  antiquity,  was  the  last  of  the 
successors  of  Alexander,  who   governed  Egypt. 
In  the  fame  of  her  beauty,  and  the  extremity  of 
her  misfortunes^  she  bears  a  strong  resemblance 
to  Mary,  Queen  of  Scotland ;  and  we  must  say, 
ivith  the  eloquent  Hume,  her  vices  are  forgotten 
in  her  unparalleled  sufferings.     Julius  Caesar  had 
already    partially    conquered    Egypt.     But    the 
final  conflict  for  the  empire  of  the  world  was  to 
take  place  between  Octavius  and  Mark  Antony  ; 
and  that  conflict  was  occasioned  by  the  arts  of 
this  perfidious  beauty.     Antony  had  abandoned 
the  virtuous  and  accomplished  Octavia,  the  sistei- 
of  Octavius,  afterwards  Augustus.      Their  quar- 
rel was  decided  in  a  battle  at  sea,  near  Actium, 
Antony,  defeated,  fled  into  Egypt,  and  there  put 


64  ANCIENT  HISTaRY, 

an  end  to  his  own  life.  Cleopatra,  to  avoid  the 
disgrace  of  being  carried  to  Rome  in  triumph, 
caused  herself  to  be  bitten  by  a  serpent,  of  which 
she  died. 

Of  the  revolutions  of  Egypt,  after  she  became 
a  Roman  province,  we  took  some  notice  in  the 
analysis  of  this  history. 

It  is  with  nations  as  with  individuals,  they 
have  their  youth,  their  manhood,  their  decline*^ 
A  glance  into  the  vale  of  antiquity,  where  w^e 
may  survey  the  fleeting  forms  of  nations  and  em- 
pires, inspires  a  pleasing  melancholy.  We  are. 
ready  to  say  of  a  Sesostris,  O  that  he  had  been 
as  good  as  he  was  great ;  and  of  a  Cleopatra,  O 
^at  she  had  been  as  virtuous  as  she  was  beauti- 
ful. Let  us  rise  up  from  this  contemplation  of 
other  times,  with  the  reflection  that  this  is  oiir 
day — our  time  ajid  place  of  action. 


6^ 


LECTURE  IV, 


Assyria, 

The  Assyrian  empire,  in  its  utmost  extent,  em"- 
^bracing  Nineveh  and  Babylon,  is  the  subject  of 
the  present  lecture.  Nineveh  was  founded  bj 
Ashur,  who  had  the  honour  of  giving  name  to 
this  first  of  empires,  and  it  was  called  Ninevelr, 
after  Ninas,  his  son  and  successor,  Babylon  was 
founded  by  Nimrod,  and  the  commencement  of 
this  great  city  was  the  tower  of  Babel.  Both 
Ashur  and  Nimrod  were  nob!y  born.  Ashur  was 
the  second  son  of  Sbem,  and  Nimrod  the  eldest 
son  of  Chush,  the  son  of  Ham.  Of  their  maternal 
ancestry  we  have  no  information. 

Nineveh  fast  rose  to  power,  conquest,  and  do- 
Biinion.  The  opinions  relative  to  the  foundatioa 
of  Nineveh  are  exceedingly  various.  BerosuSf  the 
Chaldean,  dates  the  founding  of  the  empire  131 
years  after  the  flood.  Cassiodorus  supposes  an 
interval  of  more  than  four  centuries  between 
these  events.  Usher  extends  this  interval  ta 
1,085  years.  Others  reduce  it  to  581  years. 
The  opinions  of  the  learned  are  still  far  more  va- 
rious concerning  the  duration  of  the  Assyriaa 
empire.  Ctesias,  Diodorus,  and  others,  make  it 
1,360  years;  Justin,  1,300:  Castor,  1,280;  Sy- 
nuUus,  1,460;  Scaliger,  1,306;  Eusebius,  1,240; 
Paterculus,  1,070;  Herodotus,  520;  while  Ap- 
nian  makes  the  whol&  duration  of  the  Assvrian. 
6* 


66  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

Median,  and  Persian  empires  not  to  exceed  90# 
years. 

From  these  discrepant  opinions  it  will  at  once 
appear  that  the  most  elaborate  inquiry  into  these 
very  ancient  dates,  promises  little  more  than  fa- 
tigue and  uncertainty.  In  this  lecture  I  have 
followed  the  opinions  which  appeared  the  most 
plausible,  and  they  are  comprised  in  the  analysis 
which  follows. 

The  Assyrian  history  may  be  divided  into  the 
following  periods : 

I.  From  the  respective  foundations  of  Nineveh 
and  Babylon,  which,  probably,  were  laid  about 
a  century  and  a  half  after  the  deluge,  (say  in  the 
jear  2,198  before  Christ,  although  the  exact 
time  cannot  be  ascertained,)  till  the  subjection 
of  Babylon  to  Nineveh,  by  Ninus,  in  the  year 
1,758  before  Christ,  including  a  period  of  440 
years, 

II.  From  the  subjection  of  Babylon  to  Nine- 
veh, A.  C.  1768,  to  the  death  of  Sardanapalus, 
and  the  revolt  of  Media  and  Babylon  ;  or  the 
dismemberment  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  A.  C. 
770,  including  ten  centuries. 

WI.  From  the  dismemberment  of  the  empire^ 
when  Arbaces  took  Media,  Pul,  or  Ninus  the 
younger,  took  Nineveh,  and  Belesis  took  Baby- 
lon, A.  C.  770,  until  the  conquest  of  Babylon  by 
Esarhaddon,  A.  C.  680,  including  a  period  of  9i 
years. 

IV.  From  the  union  of  Nineveh  and  Babylon,. 
in  680,  until  the  final  destruction  of  Nineveh, 
under  Saracus,  by  the  Medes,  in  the  year  before 
Christ  606,  containing  74  years. 

V.  From  the  fall  of  Nineveh,  606,  to  the  fall 
of  Babylon,  A.  C.  538,  when  taken  by  Cyrus-. 
A  perij&d  of  68  ye.ar.«. 


ASSYR'A.  :€'i. 

Of  the  state  of  those  countries  wheje  once  the 
Assyrian  empire  flourished,  we  shall  give  a  con- 
cise view  in  the  close  of  this  lecture. 

The  first  period-  of  the  Assyrian  history  pre- 
sents few  incidents.  Two  great  cities  rose  soori 
after  the  deluge,  nearly  equal  in  opulence  and 
power.  Nimrod,  the  founder  of  Babylon,  at- 
tempted to  usurp  the  £';overnment  of  the  world. 
Nimrod  signifies  a  rebel.  The  Jevvish  Targum 
says,  *'  Nimrod  began  to  be  a  mighty  man  in  sin, 
«k  murderer  of  innocent  men,  and  a  rebel  before 
Ihe  Lord.'*  The  Jerusalem  Targam  saith,  *' He 
was  mighty  in  hunting  and  in  sin,  before  God  • 
for  he  wsk  a  hunter  of  the  children  of  men."' 
The  Targum  of  Jonathan  Ben  Uzzel  saitb, 
'*  From  the  foundation  of  the  world,  none  was 
ever  found  like  Nimrod,  po^verful  in  hunting,  and 
rebellious  against  the  Lord."  The  Septuagint 
calls  him  a  surly,  or  doglike  giant  ;*  the  Arabic, 
a  terrible  tyrant ;  the  Syriac  ealls  him  a  warlike 
giant. 

Ninus  was  equally  aiabitious,  and,  probably, 
more  prudent — of  course,  more  successful  in  the 
institution  he  founded,  than  Nimrod.  1  shall., 
however,  not  pursue  the  splendid  detail  of  vic- 
tories and  conquests  usually  ascribed  to  Ninus» 
and  especially  Semiramis,  his  queen  and  succes- 
sor. Some  ancient  writers  relate,  that  Ninus, 
after  having  subjugated  all  the  nations  of  western 
Asia,  left  his  empire  to  the  sole  management  of 
h^  queen  Semiramis,  who  extended  her  conquestSr 
through  India,  and  nearly  to  the  Pacilic  ocean  ; 
that  she  adorned  her  capital  with  m.any  illustrious 
monuments  of  her  powerful  and  fortunate  reign, 
and,  at  length,   left  her  domicio)JS   to  her   son 


BB  AjrCIfiNT   HISTORY. 

Ninyas.  These  events  stand  on  nearly  the  same 
footing  with  those  related  of  Sesostris  ;  and,  ad- 
mitting they  have  any  foundation,  great  allowance 
must  be  made  for  exaggeration.  The  great  and 
pervading  mind  of  Sir  Isaac  Newton  thought 
them  little  worthy  of  notice.  And  it  is  the  ge- 
neral opinion  of  the  best  informed,  that  clear 
historical  light  extends  not  far  beyond  the  aera  of 
Nabonassar.  Another  important  'lEra  commenced 
within  five  years  after  that :  the  year  of  the  build- 
ing of  Rome  was  A.  C.  752,  the  sera  of  Nabo- 
nassar, A.  C.  747 — they  corroborate  each  other. 

V/hen  the  family  of  Noah  began  to  increase, 
after  the  deluge,  the  desceadants  of  Ham  asso- 
ciating, formed  the  germ  of  a  lasting  and  power- 
ful institution.  On  the  plains  of  Shinar  thejr 
began  to  build  a  tower  of  amazing  and  stupen- 
dous strength  and  loftiness.  Whether  this  was 
designed  as  a  place  of  retreat,  in  case  of  a  se- 
cond deluge,  whether  as  an  astronomical  obser- 
vatory, whether  as  an  impregnable  castle  in  time 
of  war,  or  whetlijer  to  aggrandize  some  great  man, 
as  an  imperial  palace,  we  cannot  determine. 
But,  in  this  enterprise  they  were  cliecked  by 
the  miraculous  confounding  of  their  language, 
not,  however,  till  they  had  reared  a  fabric  whose 
towering  summit  was  never  equalled  by  any- 
subsequent  structure. 

The  variety  of  opinions  concerning  the  con^ 
fusion  of  language  may  be  reduced  to  two  hy- 
potheses :  the  first  understands  the  event  to 
have  been  literal :  That,  whereas,  all  the  human 
family  actually  spoke  one  language,  by  an  imme- 
diate act  of  divine  power,  their  language  was 
ch.  iji^ed  from  one  to  many.  Of  course,  that 
•when    they   b^gau  to   speak  to  each  other  the.y 


A9St5llA.  69 

were  not  understood,  and  a  scene  of  indescriba- 
ble confusion,  and,  as  we  may  suppose,  of  terror^ 
ensued.  The  building  was  dropped,  and  the 
people  dispersed  abroad.  The  other  method 
supposes  this  account  to  be  wholly  figurative  : 
but,  that  a  spirit  of  discord  arising,  tiiey  were 
no  longer  able  to  act  in  consor*,  or  by  united 
counsels,  and  so  fell  into  contention,  probably  to 
fighting,  and  were  dispersed  abroad. 

By  whatever  means,  the  family  of  Ham  kept 
possession  of  the  tower  and  plain,  which,  from 
the  confusion  that  had  taken  place  there,  was 
called  Babel,  and  the  city  where  it  stood  B? by- 
Ion.  The  precise  place  where  the  three  sons  of 
Noah  settled  is  not  known.  It  is  generally 
thought  that  Noah  himself  removed  eastward. 
Ashur,  the  second  son  of  Shem,  removed  north- 
eastward from  Babylon,  and  built  Nineveh  on  the 
east  side  of  the  river  Tygris,  150  miles  from  Ba- 
bylon. This  city,  in  wealth,  powder,  and  mag- 
nificence, was  little  inferior  to  Babylon,  and  of- 
ten took  its  turn  to  reign  over  that  proud  city. 

The  fate  of  these  cities,  as  well  as  the  condi- 
tion of  the  country  round  them,  is  unknown  for 
the  space  of  1000  years.  The  loss  of  the  li- 
brary of  Alexandria,  noticed  in  the  preceding  lec- 
ture, probably  buried  these  ages  in  darkness.  Yet 
to  husband  our  scanty  materials  in  the  best  man- 
ner possible,  I  have  noticed  the  opinion  of  some 
ancient  authors,  who  affirm,  that  about  440  years 
after  the  building  of  Babylon  it  was  contjuered 
by  the  king  of  Nineveh,  and  became  subject  to  the 
Assyrian  empire  in  the  year  1758  before  Christ. 
And,  sterile  as  it  may  appear,  this  completes 
our  first  period  of  the  Assyrian  history. 

Second  period,  988  years.  Whether  this  empire 
remained  iin'shaken  durinsi  ten  centuries  that  fol- 


70  ANCIENT  HIStORV. 

low,  we  cannot  pronounce.  Various  writerSj 
however,  contend,  that  it  did,  and  they  give  a  con- 
tinued list  of  the  successive  reigns.  The  absurdi- 
ty of  this  statement  is  shown  in  Rees'  Cyclopedia, 
under  the  article  Assyria.  The  land  of  Shinar, 
where  Babylon  stood,  was  in  the  days  of  Abra- 
ham governed  by  a  king  called  Amraphel.  The 
whole  account  given  in  sacred  history  of  this 
prince  makes  him  more  resemble  the  chieftain  of 
a  banditti  than  the  ruler  of  a  great  empire.  Yet 
this  was  in  the  period  now  in  question.  The  con- 
quest of  Asia  by  Sesostris  was  also  about  tiiis 
time.  He  must  have  subdued  both  Babylon  and 
Nineveh,  if  any  such  cities  existed  in  his  time. 

Near  the  close  of  the  period  under  considera- 
tion, Sardanapalus  is  monarch  of  the  Assyfiaa 
empire,  which  in  his  day  comprehended  both 
Media  and  Babylon.  He  reigned  at  Nineveh, 
but  was  totally  lost  in  voluptuous  indolence,  and 
vicious  amusement.  iVIedia,  then  rising  to  empire, 
contained  a  brave  and  warlike  people  ;  and  Ba- 
bylon, impatient  of  the  tyranny  of  a  monarch  s6 
inactive  and  feeble,  they  both  revolted,  and  at 
one  time  lifted  the  standard  of  rebellion.  Arbaces, 
governor  of  Media,  appears  to  have  conducted  this 
revolution,  which  was  to  dismember  and  break 
down  the  Assyrian  empire.  Arbaces  was  one  of 
those  great  characters  which  have  distinguished 
the  rise  and  aggrandizement  of  every  nation. 

Sardanapalus,  supinely  wrapt  in  ease  and 
pleasure,  neither  foresaw  the  gathering  storm,  nor 
was  able  to  find  a  shelter  from  its  utmost  fury.  He 
was  crushed,  not  without  great  efforts,  however, 
to  prolong  a  life  of  infamy  ;  and  on  the  stage 
which  he  forsook,  three  men,  of  distinguished  em- 
inence in  history,  appeared.  Belesis,  a  Chaldean 
priest,  whose  counsels  and  active  services  had 


ASSYKIA.  71 

raised  bim  high  in  the  esteem  of  Arbaces,  obtain- 
-ed  the  government  of  Babylon,  and  Pul,  who  in 
his  subsequent  life  showed  himself  capable  of 
empire,  obtained  the  government  of  Nineveh. 

Babylon,  however,  and  Nineveh,  appear  to 
have  been  designed  by  the  strong  and  projecting 
genius  of  Arbaces  but  as  viceroyalties,  depend- 
ant on  his  pleasure  ;  although  he  allowed  their 
respective  governors  to  assume  the  title  of  king. 
The  events,  which  frustrated  this  purpose  of  Ar- 
baces, and,  in  the  end,  clothed  the  governors  of 
Nineveh  and  Babylon  with  absolute  dominion, 
were  they  known,  could  not  obtain  a  place  in  this 
lecture. 

,    Third  period,  91  years.     "VVe  are  now  to   con- 

gjtemplate    the    Assyrian   monarchy    in    a  definite 

form,   and,  as  Sir  Isaac  Newton   contends,  in  its 

first  form.     Arbaces,  who  had  become  a  powerful 

monarch  in  Media »  seems  to  have  been  sufficiently 

occupied  in  concerns  which  drew  his  attention  from 

Mesopotamia  ;    and  both    Babylon  and   Nineveh 

were   left   to  establish   their  own  independence. 

^.Belesis,  the  governor  or  kino;  of  Babylon,   is  the 

•r;Same  as  Nabonassar,  the  founder   of  the  famous 

chronological  ara  which  bears  this  name. 

On  his  accession  to  the  government  he  found 
the  ancient  Chaldean  year  incorrect  ;  for,  con- 
sisting of  twelve  months,  with  30  days  to  a  month, 
it  was  completed  in  360  days.  The  deficiency 
of  five  days  and  six  hours  in  each  year  was  made 
up,  by  adding  what  they  called  the  emholimean 
month,  once  in  about  six  years.  This  rendered 
the  years  of  unequal  length.  Nabonassar  adopt- 
ed the  Egyptian  time,  which  reduced  the  year  to 
365  days.  This  at  first  was  thought  correct,  but 
ultimately  was  found  to  fall  short  six  hours  : — so 
that  every  successive  year  took  place  six  hours  be- 


72  ANCiEiNT  HISTORy. 

fore  the  sun  arrived  at  the  same  point  in  the 
ecliptic  ;  of  course,  in  about  1460  years  the  be- 
ginning of  the  year  would  run  back  through  every 
point  ill  the  ecliptic,  and  would  take  place  four 
times  on  each  day  of  the  year;  and  1460  j'-ears 
of  Nabonassar's  e^ra  would  be  1459  years  of  the 
Julian  calendar. 

This  famous  sera  of  Nabonassar,  which  began 
on  the  26th  day  of  Peburary,  in  the  year  before 
Christ  747,  is  the  point  of  time  to  which  Bedford 
brought  down  his  ancient  history  and  chronology; 
and  from  ■which  Dr.  Prideaux  began  his  incompa- 
rable work,  entitled,  The  Connexion  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testaments,  with  the  history  of  the  Jews 
and  neighbouring  nations.  And  this,  as  already 
said,  was  five  years  after  tke  Varronean  sera,  or 
the  building  of  Rome. 

Nabonassar  evinced  no  less  ability  in  directing 
the  affairs  of  his  kingdom  that*  in  matters  of  usej 


lu 


science.  In  the  few  wars  which  he  carried  on, 
lie  was  generally  prosperous,  and  the  affairs  of 
Babylon,  long  depressed  by  the  jealous  tyranny 
of  a  haughty  rival  and  mistress,  now  wore  a 
.t^ourisking  aspect.  Nabonassar  reigned  12  years, 
and  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Merodach-Baladan. 
This  is  the  Chaldean  monarch  who  sent  an  em- 
bassy to  congratulate  Hezekiah,  king  of  Judah,. 
on  the  recovery  of  his  health. 

The  length  of  the  reign  of  this  prince  is  not 
known ;  nor  have  any  of  the  events  of  his  adminis- 
tration escaped  oblivion.  There  is  still  less 
known  of  his  successors  ;  nor  are  we  now  far  dis- 
tant from  the  time  that  Babylon  is  again  united 
to  the  empire  of  Nineveh,  or,  as  it  is  often  called, 
the  first  Assyrian  empire.  Let  us  return  to  the 
history  of  that  city. 

Of  the  kings  of  Nineveh,  after  the  dismember' 


ASSYRIA.  73 

ment  of  the  empire  of  Sardanapalus,  very  differ- 
ent accounts  are  given.  Rollin  considers  Pul, 
whom  I  have  just  mentioned  as  concerned  with 
Arbaces  and  Belesis  in  the  dismemberment  of  the 
empire,  as  the  father  and  predecessor  of  Sardana- 
palus. I  have  followed,  in  this  respect,  the  ar- 
rangement of  Assyrian  history  in  Rees'  Cy- 
clopedia. Other  writers  insist,  that  Nabonassar 
was  not  the  same  as  Belesis,  but  wa>  the  son  of 
Tiglath-pileser,  one  of  the  successors  of  Pul. 

Having  succeeded  in  the  overthrow  of  Sarda- 
napalus, and  dismemberment  of  his  empire,  Pul 
marched  westward,  and  carrying  victory  where- 
ever  he  went,  spread  far  and  wide  the  terror  of 
his  arms.  He  invaded  Menehem,  king  of  Isr^.el, 
in  the  second  year  of  his  reign,  and  would  at 
that  time  have  completed  the  conquest  of  the 
ten  tribes;  but  he  was  prevailed  upon  to  retire, 
by  a  present  of  a  thousand  talents  of  silver.  He 
did  not  retire,  however,  until  he  had  promised 
them  his  alliance  and  protection ;  which  promise, 
in  the  mouth  of  a  great  conqueror,  is  worse  thaa 
the  deadliest  threat. 

Pul,  after  having  subjugated  several  nations  in 
Syria  and  Palestine,  returned  to  Nineveh  in  tri* 
umph,  and  was,  in  the  opinion  of  Sir  Isaac  New- 
ton and  several  other  writers,  the  real  founder  of 
the  Assyrian  empire^  \  et  the  authority  of  Bed- 
ford, Shuckford,  and  Prideaux,  in  matters  of  this 
nature,  must  certainly  be  preferred  to  his,  whom 
I  consider  as  a  better  astronomer  than  chrorolo- 
ger.  Prideaux  affirms,  that  the  Assyrian  empire 
had  existed  1,300  years  before  the  reign  of  Sanda- 
napalus. 

According  to  the  excellent  article  of  Assyrian 
history  in  Rees'  Cyclopedia,  Pul  was  succeeded 
by  Tiglath-pileser,  his  eldest  son,  in  Niueveh. 
7 


74  ANCIENT    HISTOllV. 

The  Assyrians  of  Nineveh  were  now  formidabk' 
jn  all  the  west  of  Asia,  in  Syria,  Palestine,  and 
the   countries   west  of  the   Euphrates.     Tiglath- 
pileser  conquered   Damascus,  and  carried  away 
the  Syrians  into  captivity.       This  transportation 
of  the  inhabitants  ol    conquered  countries  seems 
to  have  been  a  peculiar  trait  in  the  policy  of  the 
Assyrian  monarchs.       By   the  kings  of  Babylon 
and  Nineveh,  most  of  the  inhabitants  of  Palestine 
first  and  last,  were  either  slain  or  carried  into  cap 
tivity.     Tiglath-pileser,  after  a  reign  of  Iti  years 
was  succeeded  by  Shalraaneser.       The  only  en 
terprize  of  this  prince   with   which   we  are  ac 
Quainted,  is  his  invasion  of  Phenicia,  and  subver 
sion  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel      He  made  a  pro 
gress  through  these  countries  with  an  overwhelm 
iug  force.     He  laid  siege  to  the  city  of  Samaria 
bul  here  he  met   with    considerable    resistance 
Hoshea,  who  was  then  on  the  throne   of  Israel 
had  withdrawn  his  allegiance  from  the  Assyrians 
and   had  made   application  to  So,    or    Sabaeus 
king  of  Ethiopia,  for  aid.     The  Assyrian  monarch 
determined  on  ample  vengeance,  after  wasting  all 
the  open  country,  laid  siege  to  Samaria,  a  fortress 
of  great  strength.     It  cost  him  the  labour  of  three 
years  to  reduce  it ;    but,  at  length,  worn  out  by 
fatigues,  and  depressed  by  famine,  this  powerful 
and  populous  city  fell  before  the  conqueror.     The 
king  of  Israel  was  loaded  with  chains,  in  which 
condition  the  stern  tyrant  caused  him  to  pass  the 
j-em^iinder  of  his  days.       The  people  of  the  ten 
tribes,  as  many  as  could  be  discovered  and  col- 
'lected  together,  were  sent  into  the  remote  regions 
of  Media,  whence  they  never  returned. 

The  subversion  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel  took 
place  about  250  years  after  their  revolt  from  the 
house  of  David,  under  Jeroboam,  the  son  of  Ne« 


ASSYKIi.. 


75 


bat.  During  this  long  period,  they  had  been 
sunk  deep  in  idolatry  and  all  the  vices  prevalent 
in  the  nations  by  which  they  were  surrounded. 
They  afford  a  striking  instance  how  lost  a  nation 
may  be  to  all  sense  of  its  true  interest.  Moses, 
their  great  legislator,  had  told  them  what  to  ex- 
pect as  the  consequence  of  such  a  course.  They 
were  warned  by  many  prophets.  They  were  re- 
proved by  the  voice,  and  by  the  hand  of  Provi- 
dence. As  they  pursued  the  footsteps  of  the  hea^ 
then  nations,  they  were  subjected  to  their  cala- 
inities,  and  given  up  to  desolation  and  ruin.  Whe- 
ther they,  like  the  Jews,  still  exist  as  a  nation, 
has  been  the  subject  of  various  inquiries.  The 
sanguine  feelings  of  projecting  theorists  have  ena- 
bled them  to  discover  this  long-lost  nation  among 
the  Tartars,  the  Turks,  the  Indians,  and  other  na- 
tions. It  is  doubtful  whether  they  ever  appear. 
The  probability  is,  that  they  blended  with  those 
Asiatic  tribes  among  which  they  lived.  Their 
propensity  to  this,  even  before  their  dispersion, 
was  too  great  to  be  restrained. 

Shalmanezer  was  succeeded  in  the  Assyrian 
throne  by  Sennacherib,  his  son,  A.  C  719. 
Little  is  known  of  the  life  and  actions  of  this 
prince  but  what  is  derived  from  the  sacred  scrip- 
tures. As  Shalmanezer  had  extirpated  the 
kingdom  of  Israel,  Sennacherib  determined  to 
complete  the  subjugation  of  all  Palestine. 
Hezekiah,  who  was  then  reigning  at  Jerusalem, 
had  refused  to  pay  the  tribute  stipulated  by  Ahaz 
to  the  Assyrian  monarch.  This  was  considered 
as  a  suitable  pretext  for  invading  Judea.  Ac- 
cordingly, Sennacherib  approached  with  a  power- 
ful araiy,  and  destroyed  every  thing  before  him. 
As  he  was  moving  forward,  like  the  slow  progress 
of  a  mighty  inundation,  he  received  a  submissive 


76  A^CIEKT  HISTORY. 

embassy  from  Hezekiah,  imploring  his  clemency^ 
and  begging  peace,  on  any  condition.  Senna- 
cherib, who  exceeded  all  his  predecessors  in 
haughtiness,  returned  a  contemptuous  answer  to 
Hezekiah,  and  replete  with  expressions  of  de- 
iiance  to  the  god  of  Israel.  He  cautioned  him 
not  to  rely  on  tlie  protection  of  God,  for  there 
was  no  god  that  was  able  to  deliver  out  of  his 
hands.  He  judged,  indeed,  of  the  God  of  Israel 
by  the  irapotency  of  those  deities  with  whom  he 
had  been  acquainted.  This  message  he  sent  by 
Rabshakeh,  one  of  his  generals,  with  a  great  body 
of  forces.  At  the  same  time  he  gave  the  king  of 
Judah  to  understand  that  he  must  expect  to  share 
the  fate  of  the  king  of  Israel,  and  go  with  his 
people  into  captivity,  at  no  distant  day. 

Before  Sennacherib  had  reached  Jerusalem  he 
received  intelii;rence  that  Tirhakeh,  king  of 
Ethiopia,  was  on  his  march  to  give  him  battle.  It 
is  thought  by  rtoliin  that  this  information  reached 
him  during  the  absence  of  Rabsliakeh,  who,  as 
already  noticed,  was  sent  with  a  blasphemous 
message  to  terrify  the  king  of  Judah,  and  to 
€omtnand  him  to  come  to  Lachish,  where  the 
Assyrian  monarch  then  lay,  and  make  submission 
to  him  by  a  present.  For  in  this  manner  had 
Shalmaneser  first  drained  the  kingdom  of  Israel 
of  all  its  treasures,  and  then  dragged  its  in- 
habitants into  captivity. 

Sennacherib,  on  receiving  new?  of  the  approach 
of  an  army  of  Lthiopians  and  Egyptians,  broke  up 
from  before  Lachish,  and  marched  towards  Egypt. 
Some  writers  siy  that  he  was  here  defeated  with 
great  loss.  Others,  and  I  <hink  with  more  proba- 
bility, that  he  routed  the  Ethiopian  army,  and 
marched  immediately  into  Egypt,  which  country 
he  ravaged  with  fire  and  sword.     On  his  return  to 


AssYraA.  77 

Judea  he  wai^  rejoined  by  Rabshakeli,  and  now 
prepared  to  set  down  before  Jerusralem. 

'J'he  conduct  of  the  king  of  Judah  on  this 
trying  occasion  is  worthy  of  particular  notice. 
On  receiving  the  insoleni  and  blasphemous  letter, 
he  went  into  the  temple  of  God,  and  spread  his 
ca':^e  before  that  awful  being,  who  is  the  King  of 
Kings  and  Lord  of  Lords.  He  received  a  gra- 
cious answer  from  God,  and  was  assured  that 
the  threatening  storm  should  be  dissipated  with- 
out approaching;  Jerusalem,  We  are  not  allowed 
to  dwell  on  particulars.  The  Assyrian  army 
was  smitten  by  pestilence,  and  nearly  ail  de- 
stroyed. Sennacherib  retUmeu  in  haste,  and 
Tfv'ith  shame  and  mortification,  to  his  own  domin- 
ions. But  there  the  avenging  hand  of  the  in- 
sulted majesty  of  the  iiniver&e  pursued  him.  A 
conspiracy  was  raised  against  him  by  his  cw^n 
sons,  and  he  was  smitten  in  the  house  of  Nisroch, 
his  god. 

Sennacherib  was  succeeded  in  his  throne  by 
his  son  Essarhaddon,  in  whose  reign  the  empire 
of  the  Assyrians  of  Nineveh  appears  to  have 
gained  its  utmost  height.  All  the  neighbouring 
nations  seem  to  have  fallen  under  the  power  of 
these  ambitious,  haughty,  and  warlike  princes. 
Even  Media  and  Babylon,  which  after  the  fall 
of  Sardanapalus  rose  into  independent  states, 
were  again  reduced  and  reannexed  to  the  empire 
of  Nineveh,  and,  indeed,  all  the  nations  of 
western  Asia,  and  also  of  Africa,  as  far  as  worthy 
of  the  ambition  of  a  conqueror,  fell  under  this 
extensive  dominion. 

And    it  was  now,  in  all  probability,  that  the 

city  of  Nineveh  appeared  in  its  utmost  splendor. 

For  the  wars  and  conquests  of  these  despotic  and 

cruel  tyrants,  were  wars  of  exlerrainatign.  They 

7^ 


^8  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

had  no  regard  to  the  claims  of  humanity  and 
mercy.  They  seemed,  indeed,  utterly  lost  to 
all  human  feelings.  They  were  not  moved  by 
the  cries  of  millions  ;  neither  had  age  or  infan- 
cy, nor  the  tears  of  beauty,  nor  the  charms  of 
virtue,  any  influence  on  their  adamantine  hearts. 
They  seized,  they  plundered,  they  slew  and 
laid  waste  wherever  they  came  ;  and  the  wealth 
of  nations  was  swept  and  heaped  together  to  gra- 
tify the  pride  and  luxury  of  one. 

We  have  no  particular  account  of  the  actions 
of  Essarhaddon.  In  the  year  668  before  Christ, 
he  was  succeeded  by  Baosduchinus,  and  he  by 
Chyniladon.  Nabopolassar,  the  general  of  the 
armies  of  this  prince,  revolted  from  him,  and 
erected  Babylon  into  an  independent  kingdom. 
The  kings  of  Nineveh,  after  Essarhaddon,  rapid- 
ly declined  ;  and  as  the  best  details  of  the  reigns 
of  tliese  kings  is  not  to  be  relied  on,  presenting, 
indeed,  little  better  than  a  scene  of  confusion  and 
uncertainty,  we  shall  hasten  to  the  catastrophy  of 
Nineveh.  Chyniladon  was  succeeded  by  Sarac, 
the  last  of  the  kings  of  Nineveh. 

Babylon  and  Media  had  once  before  conquer- 
ed Nineveh  ;  but  the  final  hour  of  retribution,  for 
this  ancient  and  abandoned  metropolis,  was  now 
approaching.  Cyaxeres,  king  of  the  Medes,  and 
Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of  Babylon,  who  had  late- 
ly succeeded  his  father  Nabopolassar,  now  com- 
bined their  iorces,  and  invaded  Nineveh,  The 
siege  terminated  in  the  reduction  of  the  city  ; 
Sarac  was  slain,  and  an  end  was  put  to  this  cruel, 
voluptuous,  and  very  ancient  people,  A.  C.  b06 ; 
74  years  from  ibe  conquest  of  Babylon  by  Es- 
sarhaddon, and  165  years  from  the  accession  oi 
Pul  to  the  throne  of  Nineveh. 

There  can  be  no  question  that  Nineveh  was 


ASSYRIA.  IM 

one  of  the  largest  cities  of  ancient  times.  When 
Jonah  wes  sent  to  prophecy  against  it,  the  scrip- 
tures declared  it  to  contain  six  score  thousand 
persons  who  could  not  discern  their  right  hand 
from  their  left,  meaning  children  in,  and  near,  in- 
fancy. What  city  in  Europe  contains  120,000  in- 
fants ?  Nineveh  mast  then  have  contained  near- 
ly a  million  of  people.  But  the  prophecy  of 
Jonah  is  supposed  to  have  been  some  time  before 
the  reign  of  Sardanapalus.  It  was  far  more  op- 
pulent  and  powerful  in  the  last  dynasty  of  it« 
princes. 

Thus  perished  the  first  Assyrian  empire.  The 
city,  which  for  ages  had  oppressed  the  nations  of 
the  earth,  in  her  turn,  sunk  in  ruin,  and  Babylon 
was  left  unrivalled.  Here  a  fabric  of  power  and 
Splendor  rose,  which  no  age  or  nation  has  eclipsed. 
Concerning  this  city  and  empire  history  is  far 
more  clear  and  definite.  Histories  have  reached 
our  times,  written  by  men  who  were  eye-wit- 
nesses of  the  greatness  and  magnificence  of  Ba- 
bylon ;  though  not  till  its  glory  had  faded,  and 
its  dominion  passed  away. 

Nebuchadnezzar  was  a  monarch  of  great  abili« 
ty  and  ambition.  The  extent  of  his  dominion^ 
the  splendor  of  his  capital,  the  greatness  of  his 
resources,  the  lustre  of  his  talents,  gave  him  a 
pre-eminence  over  all  the  monarchs  of  ancient 
limes.  No  city  ever  equalled  Babylon  in  the 
grandeur  of  its  plan  and  general  features.  An 
exact  square  of  15  miles  on  each  side  was  sur^ 
rounded  by  a  wall  carried  to  the  incredible  height 
of  380  feet.  These  amazing  barriers  were  form- 
ed of  brick  cemented  with  bitumen  to  the  soli» 
dity  of  granite,  and  were  so  broad  on  the  top 
that  several  chariots  might  i-un  abreast.  Still 
rising  above  these,   at  proper   ^nterva^J^,   W6i| 


80  ANCIENT    fllSTORi'. 

towers,  which  added  strength  and  beauty  to  thf} 
vVhole.  By  such  walis  the  structures  olBabykjs 
we-e  enchjsed.  You  have  too  otten  read  their 
description  to  require  particularity.  A  traveller 
■who  should  come  within  sight  of  such  a  city 
wo'jlfi  doubt  whether  he  beheld  the  svorks  of 
mortal  men,  or  whether  it  were  not  ialiabited  by 
a  ra(  e  of  giants. 

Which  of  all  these  amnziiM;  monuments  of  in- 
dustry and  patient  labour,  ptTpetuated  the  me- 
mory of  the  ancient  founders  of  this  city,  we  are 
not  informed.  They  had,  probably,  lisen  by 
degrees,  and  at  far  ditferent  times.  Yet  Babylon 
'  was  now  at  its  sumniit,  and  was  soon  to  experi* 
ence  its  final  and  fatal  reverse. 

Nebuchadnezzar,  when  seated  on  his  throne,  had 
many  impedimirnts  to  remove  in  his  carf  er  of 
conquest  and  aiiibitlon.  Jcruialerii  had  formerly 
set  at  defiance  the  kings:  of  Nineveh,  and  Sen- 
nacherib had  lost  an  army  in  Judea,  and,  as  sontG 
writers  say,  another  in  Egypt,  or  rather  in  a  bat- 
tle with  the  Egyptians  and  Ethiopians.  He 
therefore  invaded  Jucjea,  and  laid  siege  to  Jerui- 
.salem.  A  prince  of  a  far  different  character  from 
Hezekiah  now  CiWed  the  liuone  of  David,  and  the 
protection  of  Providence  was  Avithdravvn  from  the 
•lewish  state.  The  siege  of  the  capital  was  loDg^ 
and  severe,  but  terminated  in  the  complete  de- 
sitructioii  of  Jerusalem,  and,  what  can  scarcely  be 
read  but  with  a  tear  of  regret,  the  ruin  of  the 
finest  and  noblest  temple  ever  built  by  man.  But 
of  this  we  shall  speak  in  a  subsequent  lecture. 
The  Jews  were  carried  to  Babylon,  and  dispersed 
into  various  provinces  of  the  Chaldean  empire. 

The  conqueror  next  invaded  the  city  of  Tyre  j 
but  here  he  met  with  a  resistance  scarcely  paral- 
leled in  th^  annals  of  history.     Tyre  was  then  the 


ASSYRIA.  81 

•queen  of  commercial  cities:  she,  indeed,  be2;aii 
the  career  of  naval  commerce,  and  was,  prohnbJy, 
the  strongest  city  in  the  world.  Her  ships  Jiad 
wafted  to  her  the  treasures  of  the  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean  and  Euxine  seas ;  and  from  the 
ports  of  the  Red  Sea  she  had  received  liie  wealth 
of  the  trade  of  India,  inexhaustible  in  every  age. 
The  strength  of  the  Tyrians  by  sea  rendnred 
them  impregnable  to  the  attacks  of  a  land  army. 
The  siege  of  Tyre  lasted  thirteen  years  ;  during 
which  time,  the  king  of  Assyria  tried  every  mode 
of  attack,  and  employed  every  stratagem  of  war 
known  in  his  day. 

How  impossible  it  is  to  conquer  a  people  de- 
termined to  be  free  !  We  have  before  us  a  noble 
proof  of  the  power  of  commerce.  Whilst  the 
king  of  Babylon  was  making  slow  advances  to- 
wards the  accomplishment  of  his  sanguinary  pur- 
pose, (for  be  had  at  his  command  the  weait'i  and 
power  of  Asia,)  the  Tyrians  built  a  new  city  oa 
an  island  a  little  distance  from  the  shore.  Thither 
they  removed  their  effects  ;  and  when  the  old 
city  was  at  last  given  up  to  the  conqueror, 
he  found  nothing  in  it.  This  new  Tyre  soort 
eclipsed  the  glory  of  the  former  city,  and  flourish- 
ed till  the  time  of  Alexander  the  Great. 

Nebuchadnezzar  next  carried  his  arms  into 
Egypt.  that  country  was  for  a  moment  inun- 
dated, not  with  the  fertilizing  streams  of  the  fa^ 
ther  of  waters,  but  with  the  ruthless  tide  of  war, 
which  no  barriers  could  check  ;  before  which, 
goes  terror  and  alarm,  and  whose  path  is  marked 
with  famine,  desolation,  and  mournful  solitude. 

It  is  but  another  step,  and  we  have  finished  our 
rapid  survey  of  the  history  of  this  great  nation. 

The  reign  of  Nebuchadnezzar  was  long  and 
splendid,  subject,  however,  to  various  reverses^ 


8^  ANCIENT   HISTORV. 

which,  according  to  the  testimony'  of  the  sacred 
writers,  were  sent  upon  him  to  t';:'ch  him  his  de- 
pe:  :jen''e  on  the  Almighty  Sovereign.  The  in- 
terpretation of  his  wonderful  ream::  showed  him, 
far  beyond  the  power  of  al  moral  lessons,  the 
wisdom,  majesty,  and  glory  of  God.  The  pre- 
servation of  the  three  childrcj;  from  his  devouring 
furnace,  taught  him  the  pow^e.  of  God  ;  and  his 
own  experience,  when  driven  from  men  to  dwell 
with  the  beasts  of  the  eartli,  till  seven  times  past 
over  hnn,  taught  him  the  justice  of  God. 

The  indistinct  and  imperfect  views  we  hare  of 
this  monarch  seem  like  contemplating  a  tower 
by  twilight :  we  perceive  a  greatness  that  is 
sublime  and  terrible.  The  same  may  be  said  of 
his  kingdom,  when  considered  in  its  L'tm.ost  ex- 
tent. It  embraced  all  western  Asia,  probably  the 
north  of  Africa,  and  whether  any  in  Europe  we 
<cannot  say.  Nor  was  his  capital  inferior  to  the 
Cionarch  it  contained,  or  the  dominion  of  which  it 
Was  the  splendid  luminary.  Its  proud  structures 
lifted  their  giant  forms  in  triumph  over  all  the 
temples,  lowers,  and  palaces  ever  to  rise  on  earth, 
and  seemed  to  claim  the  homage  of  all  future 
kingdoms.  It  was,  indeed,  as  superior  to  them 
as  gold  is  superior  to  silver,  and  brass,  and  iron  ; 
or,  as  the  head  is  superior  to  the  other  members. 

After  Nebuchadnezzar,  four  monarchs  rose  in 
succession  ;  but  to  wear  and  disgrace  the  diadem. 
Evil  Merodach,  the  son  and  successor  of  this  great 
prince,  soon  fell  by  a  sudden  insurrection  :  the 
armies  of  the  Medes  and  Persians  slew  Neri- 
glissar  :  the  third  reigned  but  nine  months,  and 
was  taken  off  by  conspiracy  :  the  fourth,  and  last, 
was  Belshazzar,  who  was  slain  when  Babylon 
was  taken  by  Cyrus. 

The  successors  of  Nebucha^lnezzar  were  weak 


ASSYRIA.  83 

and  vicious;  and  little  remained  of  the  power 
and  magnificence  of  that  great  monarch,  but  what 
was  enclosed  in  the  walls  of  Babylon,  when  i  y- 
rus,  with  an  army  of  Medes  and  I'ersians,  inva- 
ded Chaldea.  Yet,  who  but  Cyrus  could  have 
reduced  Babylon?  A  wall,  360  feet  high,  87 
feet  thick,  which  had  lain  hardening  for  ages,  and 
become  like  one  solid  rock— towers  at  no  great 
distance  in  every  part — the  city  full  of  people — 
well  watered— provision  in  vast  abundance  for 
years — the  gates  a  solid  plate  of  brass,  which, 
had  they  even  had  cannon,  would  scarcely  have 
received  impression — what  daring  spirit  could 
hope  to  scale  those  walls  or  unbar  those  gates? 
In  this  siege,  I  am  often  reminded  of  the  decla- 
ration of  a" fallen  angel,  in  the  poem  of  Milton: 

*'  The  towers  of  heaven  are  filled  with  armed  watch. 
Often  the  bordering  deep  encamp  their  legions." 

Indeed,  for  an  invading  army  to  look  up  fo  the 
lofty  walls  of  Babylon,  would  be  like  looking  up 
to  heaven.  With  what  astonishing  force  missile 
weapons  would  fall  from  that  height  ! 

But  Cyrus  knew  that  what  man  can  build,  man 
can  destroy.  The  river  Euphrates  run  through 
the  city.  This  river  Cyrus  turned  out  of  its 
channel  into  an  artificial  lake,  above  the  city. 
From  the  bed  of  this  lake  the  clay  had  been  ta- 
ken, which  was  used  in  raising  the  structures  of 
the  city.  The  Persian  army  marched  down  the 
channel,  and  entered  the  city  by  the  river  gates. 
This  was  at  the  time  of  a  public  feast ;  the  people 
were  buried  in  wine  and  sleep  ;  the  king  of  Ba^ 
bylon  was  slain,  and  the  city  shared  the  fate  of 
cities  taken  by  storm.     Thus  ended  the  first  of 


S4  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

the  four  fjjreal  monarchies,  after  existing,  in  some 
forni,  1,660  years. 

In  the  four  great  monarchies,  the  Assyrian, 
Persian,  Greek,  and  R.omjm  ;  the  first  is  blyled 
the  head  of  gold.  Its  dominion  was  !ang — its 
territories  extensive — its  wealth  and  power  great. 
Little,  however,  is  known  of  the  Assyrian  peo- 
ple. Iheir  manners,  and  customs  and  general 
§;haracter,  as  a  people,  past  away  with  tr>dr-em- 
pire,  and  w^^  can  fovm  no  very  correct  judgment 
of  them  as  men.  'i'ijey  seem  to  have  wanted 
that  serious  and  ft^teiy  character  which  distin- 
guished the  people  of  Egypt;  and,  at  the  same 
time,  were  less  affable,  elegant,  and  gay,  than 
the  Persians — whose  history  will  be  the  subject 
of  the  next  lecture. 

One  of  their  customs,  for  the  sake  of  the  ladies 
faere  present,  may  be  thought  worthy  of  notice. 
The  3'oung  ladies  who  proposed  themselves  as 
candidates  for  matrimony,  were,  on  a  certain  day 
of  (lie  year,  put  up  at  public  sale.  It  was  com- 
mon for  them  to  fetch  a  price  according  to  their 
beauty  But  what  is  remarkable,  the  price  for 
whi."h  the  great  beauties  were  sold,  was  given  as 
a  dowry  to  those  of  ordinary  or  homely  ieatures. 
This  kept  the  balance  about  equal,  and  ladies  of 
inferior  beauty  married  as  advantageously  as 
those  possessed  of  the  highest  personal  charms. 
I  hope  this  will  not  be  understood  as  fiction;  it 
gives  us  a  specimen  of  ancient  prudence. 

And  since  I  have  suggested  this  topic,  I  will 
close  this  lecture  by  a  correlative  remark.  What- 
ever may  be  urged  in  favour  of  the  superior  wis- 
dom of  the  aucients,  there  is  one  article  in  which 
modern  times  rise  transcendantly  above  all  anti- 
quity ;  I  mean  the  equal  consideration — the  deli- 
cate respect  paid  to  the  female  sex.  In  the  ancient 


ASSYRIA.  .86 

Astiatic  monarchies,  their  lot  was  little  bettex 
than  the  deplorable  lot  of  slaves.  This  differ- 
ence in  favour  of  the  moderns  is  ascribed,  by 
some,  to  the  influence  of  chivalry.  It  may  be 
traced,  however,  to  a  higher  source — to  the  no- 
ble and  sublime  doctrines  of  Christianity.  There 
the  sexes  are  considered  as  engaged  in  an  equal 
race  of  glory  and  virtue,  begun  here,  but  to  rua 
parallel  through  an  immortal  state  of  exalted  im- 
provement and  felicity. 


81 


LECTURE  V 


7  7k'  Medo-Pcrsian  Einjnrc. 

Havincx  traced  an  iinsteailj  course  through 
those  labyrinths  of  conjecture  and  fiction  which 
lie  beyond  the  verge  of  authentic  history,  we 
break  into  a  broader  path,  where  fairer  regions 
interest  the  eye,  and  multiplied  objects  of  exami- 
nation crowd  the  mind.  The  light  of  history, 
during  the  first  3,000  years  of  the  world,  shone 
with  an  uncertain  beam.  The  boundary  line, 
between  the  age  of  conjecture  and  that  of  cer- 
tainty, lies  but  a  small  distance  before  the  birth 
of  Cyrus  ;  I  mean,  the  eera  of  Nabonassar,  no- 
ticed in  the  last  lecture.  The  deluge,  with  un- 
distinguishing  violence,  swept  behind  the  veil, 
save  a  small  remnant,  the  millions  of  the  old 
world — their  arts— their  sciences — their  virtues— 
their  vices—  even  their  name. 

Egypt,  for  many  ages,  the  nursery  of  art  and 
science,  which,  under  the  great  Sesostris,  gave 
law,  from  tlie  shores  ot  the  Euxine  to  the  banks 
of  the  Ganges,  was  now  suffering  a  long  and 
wasting  depression  ;  buried  in  superstition,  she 
is  condemned  to  obscurity,  till  she  shall  rise  in  a 
renovated  form,  from  the  chaos  of  Alexander's 
empire. 

Assyria,  the  venerable  mother  of  empires,  had, 
long  since,  passed  the  zenith  of  her  glory,  and 
was  just  ready  to  sink  before  the  arras  of  CyruSj. 


PERSIA.  87 

the  hero  of  Persia.  A  power  was  rapidly  rising 
to  revolutionize  Western  Asia,  and  establish  the 
prophecy  of  Daniel,  by  the  dominion  of  the 
"  breast  and  arms  of  silver,"  (Dan.  ii.  32  )  or 
the  empire  of  the  Modes' and  Persians,  which  is 
to  be  the  subject  of  the  following  lecture. 

In  attempting  an  historical  view  of  what  is 
commonly  called  the  Medo-Persian  empire,  I 
shall  proceed  according  to  the  following  arrange- 
ment : 

I.  Give  some  account  of  the  origin  and  for- 
tunes of  Media  and  Persia,  previous  to  the  birth 
of  Cyrus. 

II.  The  history  of  Cyrus  to  the  death  of  Cy^ 
axares,  or  when  Cyrus  became  sole  master  of  the 
empire. 

III.  A  view  of  tiie  great  events,  or  epochas, 
from  the  death  of  Cyaxares,  to  the  contpaest  of 
Babylon,  by  Alexander  the  great. 

!V.  The  government,  arts,  sciences,  manners, 
customs,  and  antiquities  of  the  Persians. 

V.  Their  religion,  together  with  some  account 
of  Zoroaster,  their  prophet. 

I.  Media  is  not  found  on  the  men  of  modern 
Asia.  Anciently  it  was  an  extensive  empire, 
stretching  round  the  southern  and  western  shores 
of  the  '...aspian  Sea.  Eastward  lay  v.hat  is  call- 
ed Tartary,  or  Central  Asia.  Persia  hounded  it 
iouth,  and  Assyria  west.  Laying  '  .Iwoen  dis- 
"lant  parallels  of  latitude,  it  was  suijject  to  the 
extremes  of  heat  and  cold.  The  norihern  pro- 
^  inces,  for  the  most  part,  buried  in  snow,  and  ge- 
nerally barren,  but  the  southern,  enjoying  a  de- 
lightful tem{>erature,  an  almost  spont^^neously 
})roductive  soil,  insomuch  that  it  may  now  be 
ronsidercd  as  the  Eden  of  Persia. 

rrom  the  Itcot  light  that  can  be  thrown  upon 


tt  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

the  subject,  it  appears  that  Media  was  peopled 
by  Madai,  the  son  of  Japhet,  the  son  of  Noah, 
soon  after  the  dispersion.  It  gradually  grew 
into  a  considerable  empire,  and  was  finally  sub- 
jugated by  its  more  powerful  neighbour,  Assy- 
ria, and  remained  a  territorial  government  for  a 
long  time.  When  the  Assyrian  empire  was  dis- 
iToembered  under  Sardanapalus,  (B.  C.  710,)  Me- 
dia became  again  independent.  From  this  time 
to  the  commencement  of  the  reign  of  Cyrus,  elap- 
sed a  period  of  176  years,  including  a  succession 
of  five  raonarchs. 

Dijoces  was  the  first  king.  By  a  series  of  the 
most  subtle  and  politic  measures,  he  raised  him- 
self to  the  throne,  established  a  firm  prerogative 
upon  the  anarchy  which  preceded  ;  civilized  his 
barbarous  subjects  ;  built  the  famous  city  of  Ec- 
batania  ;  effected,  in  his  country,  an  increase  of 
physical  strength  and  military  discipline  ;  and,  af- 
ter a  reign  of  63  years,  closed  his  illustrious  ca- 
reer, in  the  field  of  battle,  on  the  plains  of  Ra- 
gaw,  before  Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of  Assyria. 
He  was  succeeded  by  Phraortes,  who  reigned  22 
years,  and  fell  before  Nineveh,  in  attempting  tp 
revenge  his  father's  death. 

His  son,  Cyaxares,  an  ambitious,  wise,  and 
politic  prince,  resumed  the  hereditary  contest, 
and  after  a  series  of  various  fortune,  in  concert 
with  Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of  Babylon,  besieged 
Nineveh,  took  it,  and  levelled  with  the  earth  that 
towering  monument  of  human  perseverance  and 
glory.  Afterwards  he  carried  his  victorious 
arms  south  as  far  as  Egypt,  conquered  Persia,  and 
returned  to  Ecbatania  laden  with  immense  spoil, 
and  attended  by  captive  monarchs. 

Under  this  monarch  Media  became  settled 
into  a  permanent  and  powerful  empire.     Cyaj^a- 


PERSIA.  BV 

les,  aftc?  a  yeign  cf  40  years,  left  his  throne  to 
his  son  Astyages,  who  is  called,  iu  scripture, 
AuGsiicnis.  AUhough  he  enjoyed  a  long  reign  of 
35  years,  nothing  appears  to  have  occurred  wor- 
thy of  notice,  except  the  bloody  animosity  which 
was  excited  between  Media  aud  Babylon,  by  the 
violent  conduct  of  Evil  Merodech,  and  which 
ended  only  when  Babylon  fell.  Astyages  gave 
his  daughter  Mandane  in  marriage  to  Cambyses, 
a  king.,  or,  as  he  is  sometimes  called,  a  noble- 
man of  Persia.  The  fruit  of  this  marriage  was 
the  illustrious  Cyrus,  the  most  faultless  prince 
tiiat  ancient  history  can  boast. 

Directly  south  of  Media  lay  an  extensive  range 
cf  territory  known,  in  ancient  and  modern  geo- 
};raphy,  by  the  name  of  Persia.  It  was  bounded 
east  by  India,  soirlh  by  the  Persian  Gulph  and 
Indian  ocean,  v^'cst,  by  the  Assyrian  empires,  ex- 
tending upwci'ds  of  1,800  miles  in  length,  and 
1,000  ui  l-readlh. 

The  climate  of  this  country  varies  according 
to  iis  latitude.  In  t!je  northern,  and  mountainous 
regions,  especially  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
Immej.sc  chain  of  Taurus  or  Ararat,  which  tra- 
verses Asia  from  the  Black  Sea  to  the  bay  of  Ben- 
gal, and  which  crosses  Persia,  the  air  is  severely 
cold  ;  in  the  central  part  it  is  temperate,  clear, 
and  very  delightful.  But  tlse  southern  provinces 
lie  beneath  a  constantly  burr.ingsun.  aud  their  ex- 
tended plains  are  subject  to  be  swept  by  pestilen- 
tial winds  Travellers,  in  all  ages,  have  repre- 
sented Persia  as  very  populous,  and  the  preseni  es- 
timate is  between  30  and  40  millions  of  peopie- 
It  is  said  to  embrace  upwards  of  600  cities  and. 
towns,  several  of  which  contain  from  one  to  three 
and  four  hundred  thousand  inhabita  its.  Ispahan,  or^ 
as  it  is  now  called,  Spahaun,  contains  d50,000  ir.- 
8* 


so  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

habitants.  Persia  is  watered  by  fewer  rivers  thaa 
any  other  known  country  of  equal  extent.  Tiiis 
defect,  in  connexion  witli  corrupt  vapours,  and  ex- 
cessive heats,  renders  this  country  generally  un- 
wholesome, and  gives  the  Persians  a  pale  and 
sallow  complexion. 

The  early  part  of  the  Persian  history  has  been 
dressed  in  such  various,  far.-tastical,  and  fictitious 
robes,  that  it  is  in  a  measure  lost.  Historians 
have  at  different  times  attempted  to  strip  it  of  fa- 
ble and  ornament,  and  expose  its  true  history, 
but  little  or  nothing  satisfactory  has  been  accom- 
plished. The  various  catalogues  of  kings  which 
we  have  differ  so  essentially  that  an  attempt  to 
reconcile  them  would  be  utterly  fruitless. 

We  are  told  in  scripture  that  Persia,  or  Paras, 
as  it  is  called  by  Daniel,  was  anciently  called 
Elam  ;  and  that  it  was  peopled  by  Elain,  the  son 
of  Shem,  about  the  time  that  Media  was  settled 
by  Madai,  at  the  dispersion. 

At  the  time  of  Abraham,  we  find  Chedorlaomar, 
king  of  Elam,  or  Persia,  a  considerable  monarch 
in  his  day,  having  conquered  several  kingdoms 
of  Asia,  From  this  period  their  authentic  histo- 
ry is  lost.  They  wtre  probably  early  subjugated 
by  the  Assyrians,  who  carried  all  before  them, 
and  remained  a  long  time  subject.  They  after- 
wards recovered  their  freedom,  but  were  soon 
obliged  to  resign  it  again  to  the  Medes,  as  I  have 
already  noticed,  and  remained  tributary  to  them, 
though  under  their  native  monarchs,  to  the  time 
of  Cyrus.  Cambyses,  of  the  royal  family  of 
Achamenus,  married  Mandane,  the  daughter  of 
Astyages,  king  of  Media,  and  became  the  father 
of  Cyrus,  who  was  born  to  free  his  native  coun- 
try from  slavery,  to  restore  the  captivity  of  Jeru- 


PERSIA.  91 

salem,  and  to  establish  one  of  the  most  powerful 
empires  that  ever  existed  in  Asia. 

Having  given  some  account  of  the  origin  and 
fortunes  of  Media  and  Persia  previous  to  the  birth 
of  Cyrus,  we  shall  proceed, 

11.  To  the  history  of  that  great  man.  Cyrus 
was  born  in  the  year  before  Christ,  599.  At  12 
years  of  age  he  accompanied  his  mother  Man- 
dane  in  a  visit  to  the  court  of  Media.  Astyages 
was  soon  charmed  with  the  promising  appearance 
of  his  grandson,  insomuch  that  he  retained  him  in 
Media,  where  he  remained  four  or  five  years.  The 
young  plant  began  already  to  extend  its  branches, 
and  promised  to  become  a  mighty  cedar.  The 
affability  of  his  temper,  the  simplicity  of  his  de- 
portment, the  serenity  of  his  countenance,  the 
sincerity  of  his  heart,  and,  above  all,  the  prowess 
of  his  arm,  excited  the  admiration  of  the  court,  the 
camp,  and  the  halh  The  Medes,  both  noble  and  ig- 
noble, proved,  by  their  attachment,  that  Cyrus  was 
fully  deserving,  if  not  destined,  to  wear  a  crown. 

At  17  years  old,  he  returned  to  his  father's 
court,  followed  by  the  affectionate  blessing  of  the 
Medes,  and  welcomed  with  enthusiasm  by  his  na- 
tive Persians.  In  the  inconsiderable  wars  which 
were  at  times  waged  with  neighbouring  nations, 
Cyrus  was  always  victorious,  always  generously- 
rewarded  the  brave,  always  mercifully  spared 
the  conquered.  As  his  father  Cambyses  advanced 
in  age,  he  gradually  associated  Cyrus  with  him 
in  the  government,  the  burden  of  which  he  was 
obliged  to  bear.  Thus  he  lived  till  he  was  40 
years  old.  But  the  prime  of  his  life  was  not  use- 
lessly wasted ;  a  new  sera  in  the  military  tactics  of 
Persia  began  with  him.  A  course  of  discipline 
was  established  which,  in  a  short  time,  rendered 
the  Persians  the  best  soldiers  in  Asia.     The  arts 


92  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

of  peace  were  cultivated,  civilization  rapidly  ad« 
vanceJ,  and  this  barbarous,  enslaved,  and  unimpor- 
tant people,  under  the  transibraMng  genius  of 
Cyrus,  suddenly  became  so  forniidable  that  uiey 
vvere  accused  by  trieir  neighbours  of  already 
aspiring  to  the  dominion  of  Asia> 

Astyages,  the  king  of  Media,  died,  and  left  his 
dominions  to  his  son  Cyaxares,  who  was  but  one 
year  older  than  Cyrus.  Nereglissar,  the  king  of 
Babylon,  pursuing  the  council  of  his  predecessors, 
thought  the  death  of  Asiyages  a  favourable  crisis 
to  aim  an  exicrminating  stroke  at  the  growing 
power  of  Media,  levied  an  immense  army  of 
250,000  men  from  the  populous  regions  west  of 
the  Euphrates,  and  placed  himself  at  their  head. 
Cyaxares.  having  lately  assumed  the. reigns  of  go- 
vernment, was  justly  alarmed  at  those  extensiVe 
preparations,  which  threatened  not  only  to  rob 
bim  of  crown  and  empire,  but  suddenly  to  extin- 
guish his  flatteriug  expectations  that  Media  would 
rise  to  the  empire  of  Asia.  Unterrified,  howe- 
ver, by  the  awful  crisis,  he  rapidly  concentrated 
his  force,  with  the  resolution  of  extreme  resistance, 
and  sent  for  aid  into  Persia,  with  an  express  de- 
mand that  Cyrus  should  be  invested  with  the 
command  of  the  auxiliaries. 

The  demand  met  with  a  prompt  compliance. 
From  the  peculiar  nianner  in  which  Cyrus  levied 
bis  army,  we  may  suppose  his  comprehensive 
genius  already  embraced,  in  a  measure,  that  vast 
scheme  of  conquest  which  he  afterwards  executed. 
He  first  chose  200  of  those  who,  trom  childhood, 
had  been  his  companions  in  toil  atifd  in  ease,  to  b^ 
the  commanders  of  his  army.  He  then  command- 
ed each  of  the  200  to  choose  four  men  for  subordi- 
nate officers,  vVbkb  srmoHJited  to  1,000.    Finally. 


PERSIA.  93 

each  of  the  four  chose  30  of  the  best  soldiers  he 
couid  find.  When  ail  were  marshailed,  Ihey 
amounted  to  31,000.  An  army  thus  appointed, 
might  well  be  capable  of  greatly  achieving. 

At  the  head  of  this  body  Cyrus  joined  his 
uncle  Cyaxares,  already  preparing  to  march.  In 
joint  command  they  moved  towards  the  borders 
of  Assyria,  after  Cyrus  had  reduced  the  king  of 
Arminia,  from  a  revolt,  obtained  in  the  father  an 
immoveable  ally,  and  in  the  son,  the  interesting 
Tigranes,  a  bosom  friend. 

Nereglissar,  the  king  of  Babylon,  having  con- 
centrated an  immense  force  of  200,000  foot  and 
60,000  horse,  advanced  towards  Media  and  met 
the  Medes  and  Persians,  of  not  half  their  number, 
not  far  from  the  boundaries  of  the  two  eirpires. 
A  general  battle  was  fought,  and  Cyrus  was  com- 
pletely victorious.  For  although  Cyaxares  had 
an  equal  command,  yet  the  masterly  genius  of 
Cyrus  demanded,  and  obtained  the  undivided 
honour  of  the  laurel. 

The  unfortunate  king  of  Babylon  was  slain,  and 
Cro3Sus,  king  of  Lydia,  who  succeeded  to  the 
command,  was  driven  in  confusion  from  the  field, 
his  army  dispersed,  and  his  camp  abandoned  \q 
the  Medes  and  Persians.  Such  was  the  fortune 
of  the  first  campaign,  which  gave  a  strong  com- 
plexion to  the  succeeding  contest.  The  throne 
of  Babylon  was  imtnediately  filled  by  Laboroso- 
archod,  whosa  cruelties,  in  a  few  months,  urged 
his  subjects  to  seek  a  last  redress,  by  sacrificing 
him  to  their  vengeance.  Labynif,  or,  as  he  is 
called  m  Scripture,  Belshazzar,  was  crowned  in 
his  stead.  Belshazzar  appears  to  have  been  a 
voluptuous  and  wicked  prince,  careless  of  the 
great  duties  of  a  monarch,  and  intent  only  upon 
the   pleasures  of  sense  :    but  he  had  a  partner 


04  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

equal  to  the  grand  employment.  Nitoclcs,  his 
mother,  inherited  the  great  talents  of  her  father, 
Nebuchadnezzar,  and,  by  a  vigorous  administra- 
tion, protracted,  for  some  time,  the  fate  of  her 
abandoned  son.  Her  name  stands  upon  the  re- 
cords of  time,  in  the  list  of  women  who  have  been 
able,  by  a  supremacy  of  genius,  to  pieserve  the 
honour  of  the  throne— to  give  momentum  to  the 
concerns  of  an  extensive  empire,  and  beautifully 
to  biend  the  delicacy  of  a  female  with  the  ma- 
jesty of  a  crou'n. 

In  tije  mean  time,  a  vigorous  plan  of  opera- 
iions  was  pursued  by  Cyrus,  in  reducing  the 
strong  holds  of  the  Assyrians,  and  gradually  pre- 
paring an  unobstructed  march  to  Babylon.  The 
remonstrances  of  Nilocles,  seconded  by  the  near 
approach  of  the  Persians,  roused  the  Assyrian 
king  to  prevent,  if  possible,  the  fall  of  his  empire. 
Aided  by  immense  treasures,  and  extensive  alli- 
ances, he  forn::cd  a  combination  of  powers  to 
overwhelm  the  Persians  at  once,  and  levied  an  ar- 
my of  4i'0  000  men  from  Egypt  to  the  shores  of 
the  Eurine.  Crfjesus,  king  of  Lydia,  was  ap- 
pointed to  the  supreme  command.  Lydia  was  a 
fmaji  kini^dom  on  the  eastern  shore  of  the  it]gean 
Sea,  northwest  from  Babylon.  Crcesus,  its  king, 
was  one  of  the  ablest  generals  of  his  time,  and  was 
also  the  greatest  patron  of  science,  being  the  in- 
timiate  friend  of  almost  all  thb  philosophers  of  the 
age,  and  so  rich,  that  his  name,  even  among  us, 
is  a  common  proverb.  The  place  of  general  ren- 
dezvous was  Thymbra,  a  small  town  not  far 
from  Sardis,  the  capital  of  Lydia,  on  the  river 
Pactolus. 

No  sooner  did  Cyrus  hear  of  the  vast  force 
that  was  concentrating  against  him,  than  he  deter- 
mined upon  one  of  those   plans,  the  success  of 


95 


wljich  depencis  not  upon  physical  stronglh,  bat 
celerity  of  execution.  With  about  80,000  men, 
he  immediately  marched  across  the  broad  territo- 
ries of  the  Assyrians,  1,200  miles,  in  quei^t  of 
400,000.  He  found  them  at  Thymbra,  and 
without  hesitation  offered  them  battle.  When  the 
line  of  battle  was  formed,  Croesus  perceived  that 
he  might  easily  surround  the  Persians,  and  made 
his  dispositions  accordingly.  The  wings  were 
commanded  to  wheel  and  attack  the  Persians  in 
flank  and  rear.  But  the  penetrating  eye  of  Cy- 
rus quickly  saw,  and  defeated,  the  plan.  He  dis- 
posed his  columns  so  that  tlicy  fought  without 
disorder,  and  presented  a  formidable  front  in 
every  direction.  At^ter  a  short  and  close  conflict, 
the  wings  of  the  Assyrian  army  gave  way,  and 
were  pursued  with  gre."t  slaughter.  But  100,000 
Egyptians,  forming  the  centre  of  the  army,  in 
close  order,  sheltered  by  a  bridge  of  shields,  firm- 
ly resisted,  and  threatened  fatally  to  shake  the 
Persian  columns.  The  Persian  army  was  already 
fringed  with  the  slain,  and  the  hardy  Egyptians 
were  upon  the  point  of  breaking  their  central 
front,  when  Cyrus  returned  from  the  fierce  pur- 
suit, animated  with  the  certainty  of  victory.  Per- 
ceiving that  this  was  the  eventful  moment,  he  fell 
with  the  force  of  a  mountain  torrent  upon  the 
flank  of  the  Egyptians,  who  fought  with  unabated 
fury.  Thousands  after  thousands  fell,  and  would 
have  continued  to  fall,  had  not  Cyrus,  who  weli 
knew  the  passive  bravery  of  the  Egyptians,  and 
regretting  that  such  excellent  soldiers  should  thus 
perish,  without  benefit  to  themselves  or  their 
cause,  offered  them  terms  which  they  could  not 
with  honour  decline.  They  not  only  submitted 
to  the  victor,  but  immediately  volunteered  in  hfe 


96  ANCIENT  HISTORV. 

service,  and  from  that  time  became  a  distinguish- 
fid  section  of  his  army. 

Thus  closed  the  famous  battle  of  Thymbra : 
another  bloody  wreath  to  bind  the  brow  of  Cy- 
rus, and  establish  his  fame  as  the  first  warrior  up- 
on the  theatre  of  the  world.  This  battle  deci- 
ded the  fate  of  Lesser  Asia.  Cyrus  pursued  his 
fortune  :  Arabia  and  Syria  successively  fell  be- 
fore him,  till  at  length,  the  great  Babylon  stood 
alone  upon  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  and 
frowned  upon  the  conqueror,  angrj'  at  his  past 
success,  and  defying  his  future  attempts. 

The  same  Providence,  which  had  before  made 
known,  by  the  mouths  of  Isaiah  and  Daniel,  that 
Babylon  should  fall,  had  endued  Cyrus  with  a 
mind  not  to  be  diverted  by  apparent  difficulties  ; 
not  to  be  frustrated  by  real  impediments.  He 
encamped  beft>re  the  city,  and  commenced  a 
regular  siege.  Here  we  must  again  admire  that 
activity  and  expansion  of  mind  which  suggested 
the  adoption  of  a  stratagem  completely  successful. 
Among  the  many  monuments  of  the  power  and 
wisdom  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  there  was  one  which 
ROW  became  the  means  of  the  fall  of  Babylon. 
At  some  distance  from  the  city,  there  were  im- 
mense reservoirs,  dug  for  the  purpose  of  receiv- 
ing the  redundant  water  of  the  Euphrates,  and 
of  preventing  the  fatal  effects  of  occasional  inun- 
dations. Several  canals  formed  a  communicatioiit 
between  these  reservoirs  and  the  river.  By  open- 
ing these  canals,  the  water  might  easily  be  turned 
from  its  natural  course,  the  bed  of  the  river  be- 
left  dry,  and  a  free  passage  into  the  heart  of  the 
city  laid  open. 

The  public  festivals  of  the  Babylonians,  were 
generally  celebrated  with  the  most  extravagant 
riot,  drunkenness,  and  debauchery,  and  frequently 


PERSIA.  y7 

continued  for  several  days  without  intermission. 
C/rus  chose  the  night  preceding  one  of  these  fes- 
tivals for  the  execution  of  his  plan.  The  course 
of  the  river  was  suddenly  stopped  ;  the  arniy,  ia 
two  divisions,  in  siience  raarched  under  the  wall 
upon  the  north  and  south  sides  of  the  city,  defeat- 
ed  the  feeble  resistance  of  a  few  drunken  guards, 
and,  without  loss  of  biood,  introduced  themselves 
into  the  midst  of  that  proud  capital. 

While  Cyrus  was  taking  undisputed  possession 
of  the  city,  a  scene  of  a  very  ditferent  character 
was  passing  in  the  palace  of  Belshazzar.  This 
devoted  monarch  had,  as  usual,  invited  the  nobles 
of  his  court,  and  the  princes  of  the  empire  to  a 
splendid  entertainment.  Nothing  was  wanting  to 
increase  the  pleasure  of  the  eye,  of  the  ear,  of 
the  palate.  They  exhausted  the  golden  goblets, 
which  were  sacrilegiously  plundered  from  the 
temple  of  Jerusalem — they  appeased  their  appe- 
tite with  the  most  luscious  viands — they  listened 
to  strains  of  lascivious  music.  When,  suddenly,  an 
awful  vision  struck  them  into  a  death-like  silence — 
A  hand,  the  finger  of  God,  appeared  writing  upon 
the  wall,  '*  Mene,  Mene,  Tekel,  Upharsin." 
The  astrologers,  the  iuterpreters,  the  Magi,  who 
used  to  fill  the  ear  of  Belshazzar  with  dreams 
and  predictions  of  his  future  glory,  were  asto- 
nished and  dumb  at  the  sight.  Till,  at.  length, 
Daniel,  the  proohet  of  Jehovah,  who  had  long 
and  faithfully  S€/ived  the  king,*in  the  quality  of 
prime  minister,  addressed  the  terrified  monarch. 
He  firmly  reproved  him  for  his  idolatrous,  wicked, 
a^d  abandoned  life— he  appealed  to  the  enor- 
mous crimes  he  had  been  guilty  of  against  his 
miserable  subjects,  and,  against  God  ; — then  point- . 
ing  to  the  inscription  on  the  wall,  he  thus  spoke  : 
''  This  is  the  interpretation  of  the  thijig.— God 
-9 


98  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

hath  nuip.bered  thy  kingdom,  and  finished  ii; 
thou  art  Vveit^lied  in  the  balances,  and  found  want- 
ing ;  thy  kmgdouj  is  divided,  and  given  to  the 
Medes  and  Feisians," 

Cvms  was  already  at  the  gates  of  the  palace. 
The^alarm  was  sounded,  and  the  impious  Belshaz- 
zar,  rushinj;  ffoiii  the  hall,  sword  in  hand,  vvas 
met  by  the  Persians,  and  instantly  cut  to  pieces, 
with  all  his  attendajits.  When  the  last  sun  de- 
ricended,  this  proud  monarch  looked  from'  his 
lofty  battlements,  and  knew  not,  or  thought  not,  of 
an  arm  tbat  was  able  to  humble.  At  mJdnight, 
from  the  midst  of  rt  veky,  be  is  called  to  answer 
the  demands  of  r('tr!')utive  justice.   • 

The  death  of  Belshazzar,  as  you  have  already- 
heard,  put  a  period  to  the  second  Assyrian  em- 
pire, B.C.  536.  The  reduction  of  Babylon  was 
lollo^ved  by  the  submission  of  all  the  Assyrian 
territories,  and  the  empire  of  Cyrus  was  bounded 
north  by  the  Caspian  and  Black  seas,  east  by 
India,  south  hy  the  Arabian  Sea  and  E.thiopia,  and 
west  by  Lybia,  the  Mediterranean,  and  Archipe* 
lago  ;  comprehending  Asia  Minor,  Syria,  Egypt, 
Arabia,  Assyria,.  Arinenia,  Media,  and  Persia ; 
embracing,  as  Gibbon  says  of  the  Roman  empire, 
jn  after  ages,  "  the  fairest  parts  of  the  earth,  and 
the  most  civilized  portion  of  mankind."  Cyrus 
and  Cyaxares,  or,  as  he  is  called  in  Scripture^  Da- 
rius the  Mede,  in  a  short  time  established  the 
government  upoti  an  inanovable  base.  They 
divided  the  empire  into  120  provinces,  according 
to  the  prophet,  and  appointed  satrapa^,  or  govern- 
ors over  them.  Three  persons  were  also,  from 
among  the  wisest  men  in  the  kingdom,  selected  to 
inspect  the  conduct  ©f  the  satraps,  and  render 
an  account  to  the  king.  The  first  of  these  was 
Baniel;  the  prophet,  uaiversaUy  acltjiowledge^. 


PERSIA.  29 

astiJG  wisest  maji  in  the  east.  He  was  exglted 
to  the  high  station  of  priirie  minister  by  Nebu- 
ciiadnezzar,  and  had  served  in'  that  capacity  65 
years.  How  different  an  aspect  would  the  world 
now  wear  could  such  rnen  be  cliosen  to  direct 
the  alTairs  of  nations  1 

Two  years  after  the  fall  of  Babylon,  Cyaxares, 
the  uncle,  and  Oambyses,  the  father  of  Cyrus, 
died,  and  he  was  left  sole  master  of  the  new  em- 
pire, B.  C.  534. 

Ill,  According  to  the  plan  adopted,  we  are  to 
give  a  view  of  the  great  events,  or  epochas,  from 
Cyrus'  accession  to  the  united  thrones  of  Media 
and  Persia  to  the  conquest  of  Babylon  by  Alex- 
ander the  Great.  This  period  extends  from  B. 
C.  534  to  B.  C,  SSO,  comprehending  204  years. 

1.  The  first  transaction  worthy  of  notice  in 
this  period  is  the  celebrated  edict  of  Cyrus, 
granting  liberty  to  the  Jews  to  return  and  rebuild 
t|ie  temple  of  Jerusalem,  which  had  been  de- 
stroyed 70  years  before  by  N-cbuchadnezzar. 
Daniel,  who  was  anxiously  waiting  for  the  close 
of  the  period  allotted  for  the  captivity  to  expire, 
knew  that  the  time  was  come,  and  by  showing  to 
Cyrus  that  his  own  name  had  been  already 
standing  upon  the  rolls  of  Isaiah's  prophecy  up- 
wards of  1.00  years,  as  the  chosen  instrument  of 
this  glorious  deliverance,  obtained  from  him  a 
royal  privilege  to  restore  the  captive  Jews,  and 
renewedly  to  consecrate  a  temple  to  the  Lord  of 
Hosts. 

2.  The  next  circumstance  which  engages  our 
attention  is  the  death  of  Cyrus,  which  happened 
7  years  after  the  death  of  Cyaxares,  9  years  after 
the  fall  of  Babylon,  and  30  years  after  he  began 
the  war  with  the  Assyrians'.  According  to  our 
ideas  of  prosperity,  it  may  seem  matter  of  regret 


100  ANCIENT  mSTOHY. 

that  he  did  not  Jive  longer  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of 
his  labours  in  the  council  and  in  the  field  ;  that 
after  a  life  of  63  years,  filled  with  great  actions, 
he  was  permitted  but  7  years  to  wear  a  crown. 
But  why  should  he  live  longer?  He  had  liberated 
his  native  country  from  the  abject  condition  of  a 
dependent  state  ;  he  had  hastened  the  progress  of 
civilization  by  salutary  institutions  ;  he  had  ful- 
filled the  designs  of  Providence,  by  destroying  the 
*'  head  of  gold,"  and  substituting  the  "  breast 
and  arms  of  silver  ;"  he  had  restored  the  captivi- 
ty of  Jerusalem  ;  he  had  established  the  empire  of 
the  Medes  and  Persians  upon  so  firm  a  basis,  that 
notwithstanding  the  weakness  and  violence  of 
many  of  his  successors,  it  remained  unshaken  up- 
wards of  200  years.  What  more  was  necessary  ? 
While  he  had  any  thing  to  do,  he  was  active  and 
persevering,  and  when  he  had  nothing  to  do,  he 
died.  If  we  do  the  same,  we  do  nobly  ;  we  shall 
also  reign,  and,  instead  of  a  crown  of  diamonds, 
we  shall  wear  a  crown  of  glory. 

Cyrus  died  at  70  years  of  age.  He  left  two 
sons,  Cambyses  and  Smerdis,  the  former  of  whom 
was  appointed  his  successor.  To  enter  into  a 
particular  narration  of  the  actions  of  every  suc- 
ceeding king,  would  be  beyond  the  design  of  this 
lecture.  I  shall  just  state  the  order  of  succes- 
sion, with  the  length  of  the  several  reigns,  and 
then  proceed  to  the  consideration  of  the  most  im- 
portant events.  Cambyses  reigned  7  years  ; 
Smerdis,  8  months  ;  Darius  Hystaspes,  36  years  ; 
Xerxes  I.,  21  years;  Artaxerxes  Longimanus,  41 
years;  Xerxes  II.,  45  days;  Sogdianus,  a  few- 
days  ;  Darius  Nolhus,  1 9  years  ;  Artaxerxes  Mne- 
mon,  46  years ;  Ochus,  21  years  ;  Arses,  2  years  ; 
Darius  Codomannus,  6  years. 

3.  Cambyses  was  of  a  disposition  directly  con« 


PERSU,  IQl 

trarjrto  thatof  his  father  Cyrus.  Madness  and 
cruelty,  in  the  extreme,  were  the  distinguishing 
traits  of  bis  character.  He  undertook  two  expe- 
ditions, one  against  Egypt,  the  other  against  Ethi- 
opia. Succeeding  in  the  first,  and  fully  glutting 
his  vengeance  by  tiie  most  unprovoked  cruelties, 
jhe  attempted  the  latter.  An  immense  army  was 
raised,  and  ambassadors  sent  to  the  king  of  Ethio- 
pia, demanding  submission.  The  king,  in  re- 
turn, presented  Cambyses  with  a  bow  of  great 
strength  which  he  used,  adding,  that  until  the 
Persians  could  learn  to  use  such  arms,  they  must 
not  hope  to  conquer  the  Ethiopians.  Enraged  at 
this  answer,  Cambyses  ordered  his  army  imme- 
diately to  march,  unfurnished  with  provision  for 
such  an  undertaking.  Several  days  they  traver-i 
sed  the  desert  in  quest  of  the  Ethiopians,  till,  at 
length,  hunger  reduced  them  to  the  dreadful  alter- 
native of  killing  every  tenth  man  as  food  for  the 
rest  A  great  part  of  the  army  being  lost,  Cam- 
byses returned  to  Egypt,  where  he  appeased  his 
mortitied  pride  by  redoubled  cruelties  towards 
his  innocent  subjects.  He  murdered  his  brother, 
his  sister,  his  friends,  and  his  enemies,  with  the 
same  uamingled  and  relentless  malice.  He  was 
succeeded  by  Smerdis,  the  usurper,  who  was  ta- 
ken off  by  a  CQuspiracy,  after  haying  reigned  but 
8  months. 

A.  The  family  of  the  great  Cyrus  becoming 
extinct,  Darius  Hystaspes,  a  distant  branch  of  the 
royal  family,  was  elected  to  the  crown.  Two 
or  three  events  in  his  reign  we  shall  notice.  In 
order  to  establish  himself  more  firmly  on  the 
throne,  Darius  determined  upon  some  great  ex- 
pedition. We  have  already  observed,  that  about 
120  years  before,  the  Scythians  had  broken  from 
the  F/i\ds.of  the  .Danube  aad  Neistqr  iato  Asia 
9* 


102  ANCIENT   mSTORV. 

Minor,  and  held  that  country  in  subjection  28 
years.  Under  pretence  of  revenging  this  irrup- 
tion, Darius  collected  a  vast  army  of  700,000  men, 
and  marched  to  the  Bosphorus  of  Thrace,  a  nar- 
row strait  between  Europe  and  Asia,  near  which 
is  now  situated  the  city  of  Constantinople.  Leav- 
ing a  strong  guard  at  this  pass,  he  crossed  the 
strait  on  a  bridge  of  boats,  reduced  Thrace,  and 
marched  into  Scj'thia.  Unwilling  to  risk  the 
event  of  a  general  battle,  the  Scythians  pursued  a 
kind  of  predatory  warfare,  defeating  the  strag- 
gling parties  of  Darius,  laying  waste  the  country, 
auid  cutting  off  the  provisions,  till  he  found  him- 
self under  the  necessity  of  making  good  his  re- 
treat, or  perishing  with  his  vast  army.  He  pre- 
ferred the  former,  and  returned  with  as  much  ex- 
pedition as  possible  to  the  Bosphorus.  In  the 
mean  time,  the  Scythians  had  proposed  to  the 
lonians,  who  were  left  to  guard  the  pass  during 
the  absence  of  Darius,  to  break  down  the  bridge, 
and  thus  cut  off  the  retreat  of  the  Persian  army. 
Miltiades,  chief  of  the  Thracian  Chersonese,  a  co- 
lony of  the  Athenians,  who  warmly  embraced  this 
opportunity  of  throwing  off  the  Persian  yoke,  and 
freeing  his  country  from  slavery,  approved  the 
proposal,  and  advised  the  lonians  to  break  down 
the  bridge.  But  his  advice  was  opposed,  and  he 
was  obliged  to  seek  safety  by  flight.  This  was 
one  cause  of  the  bloody  war  which  soon  after 
broke  out  between  the  Greeks  and  Persians. 

Darius,  thus  baffled  in  his  Scythian  expedition, 
tried  his  fortune  in  another  direction,  and  was 
successful  in  subduing  the  greater  part  of  India  to 
his  dominion. 

After  his  return  from  his  Indian  expedition,  he 
found  that  the  Grecian  colonies  of  Asia  Minor, 
which  had  long  before  been  established  upon  the  , 


PERSIA.  10'3 

eastern  snores  of  the  Mediterranean,  and  were 
become  powerful,  had  revoited  under  Aristagoras, 
their  satrap,  or  governor,  and  were  aided  in  their 
attempt  to  recover  thejr  treedom  by  the  Atheni- 
ans. An  army  of  lonians,  being  joined  by  a 
body  of  Athenians,  burnt  the  city  of  Sardis,  but 
Vv'ere  soon  after  defeated  and  dispersed,  and  the 
A^atic  Greeks  again  reduced  to  their  former  state 
of  subjection. 

This  was  the  determining  stroke.  Darius,  from 
that  time,  resolved  to  make  war  upon  Greece,  and 
more  fully  to  evince  his  resolution,  ordered  his 
cup-bear«r  every  day  to  proclaim  in  his  ear  at 
dinner,  "  Remember  the  Athenians."  Appoint- 
ing Mardonius,  iiis  son-in-law,  an  inexperienced 
young  man,  generalissimo  of  all  his  sea  and  land 
forces,  he  commanded  him  to  invade  Greece. 
Accordingly,  i\Iardonius  landed  in  Macedon,  anc^ 
having  first  lost  his  fleet  in  a  storm,  with  20,000 
men,  was  defeated  by  a  small  body  of  Thracians, 
who  suddenly  fell  upon  him,  and  finished  the 
campaign  by  prudently  returning  to  Persia  with 
what  force?  he  had  remaining.  Attributing  the 
failure  of  this  expedition  to  its  true  source,  want 
of  experience  and  skill  in  Mardonius,  Darius  next 
appointed  Datis  and  Artaphernes,  the  one  a  Mede, 
the  other  a  Persian,  to  the  command.  To  carry 
the  appearance  of  moderation,  Darius  sent  heralds 
to  Athens  and  Sparta,  demanding  "  earth  and  wa- 
ter," which  was  the  token  of  submission.  The 
heralds  were  thrown  into  a  ditch,  and  told  to  carry 
earth  and  water  from  thence.  This  insult  was 
quickly  followed  by  the  appearance  of  Datis  at 
the  head  of  100,000  foot  and  10,000  horse,  oa 
the  plains  of  Marathon.  By  the  advice  of  Mil- 
tiades,  the  Athenians,  unsupported  by  their  allies, 
i\)iom  the  terror  of  the  Persian  army  had  silencetj^ 


1p4  AKCIEiST  HISlORY. 

determiued  to  support  the  unequal  contest  to  the 
utmost.  Tiiey  armed  their  slaves,  and  though 
but  10,000,  marched  to  meet  their  enemies.  The 
Athenian  armj  had  ten  commanders,  who  exer- 
cised the  office  alternately  ;  but,  following  the  ex- 
ample of  Aristides  the  Just,  they  unanimously  re- 
signed the  chief  command, to  Miltiades  ;  a  memo- 
rable instance  of  rival  claims  to  distinction  vyyl- 
lingly  resigned  for  the  public  good. 

itiiltiades  posted  his  army  in  such  a  manner 
that  it  could  not  be  surrounded,  being  flanked  by- 
woods,  and  defended  in  the  rear  by  a  mountain. 
By  this  position  he  put  it  out  of  the  power  of  the 
Persian  cavalry  to  manoeuvre  to  advantage,  and 
proved  that  the  fate  of  a  battle  depends  upon  the 
foresight  of  a  commander,  and  that  this  quality 
cannot  be  counterbalanced  by  numbers.  After 
the  first  onset,  the  centre  of  the  Athenian  army, 
being  by  far  the  weakest,  could  not  sustain  the 
force  of  the  Persians,  but,  overpowered  by  ten 
times  their  number,  were  obliged  gradually  to 
give  ground.  But  they  still  continued  to  fight 
with  the  fury  of  despair,  and  every  inch  of  ground 
that  wa?  gained,  was  bought  with  the  lives  of 
thousands.  In  the  mean  time,  the  wings  of  the 
Athenian  army,  their  chief  dependence,  routed 
the  Persians,  and  pursued  thera  with  incredible 
slaughter.  They  returned  from  following  the 
flying  foe  just  in  time  to  prevent  the  utter  ruin  of 
their  centre,  which  was  nearly  sinking  under  the 
pressure  of  vastly  superior  numbers  :  with  an  im- 
petuosity not  to  be  resisted,  they  rushed  upon  the 
roar  of  the  Persian  army,  and  shortly  decided  tbe 
fate  of  the  day.  7'he  Persians  were  routed,  and 
fled  with  all  speed  to  their  ships  ;  but  were  pur- 
sued by  the  Athenians  with  unremitted  destruc- 
tion., till  tbey  finally  arrived  in  Asia,,  having  lois4 


peHsia.  10$ 

;i  great  part  of  their  army  and  fleet.  Thus  ended 
the  second  endeavour  of  Darius  to  subjugate 
Greece.  Their  attempt  v/as  made  in  an  unhappj 
season.  Greece,  now  in  the  prime  of  life,  was 
literally  crowded  with  heroes  and  statesmen,  and 
was  able,  by  the  terror  of  her  arms,  to  shake  an 
empire  comprehending  almost  half  of  Asia,  to  its 
base  ;  and  to  give  more  importance  to  a  territory 
Hot  larger  than  New-Jersey  than  all  the  world 
could  claim  beside. 

6.  The  next  event  worthy  your  notice  took 
place  ten  years  after  the  one  we  have  been  con- 
templating, namely,  the  invasion  of  Greece  by 
Xerxes.  Darius  died  soon  after  the  battle  of  Ma- 
rathon, and  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Xerxes 
the  Great.  As  soon  as  he  was  seated  upon  the 
throne,  he  resolved,  contrary  to  the  advice  of  bis 
wisest  counsellors,  and  they  were  but  few,  (being 
mostly  surrounded  by  vicious  and  effeminate  pari- 
sites,)  to  revenge  the  flames  of  Sardis  and  the 
bloody  plain  of  Marathon  by  the  annihilation  of* 
the  Grecian  states.  Three  years  were  spent  in 
extensive  preparations  throughout  his  vast  domi- 
nions. The  Carthaginians,  at  that  time  power- 
ful, were  induced  to  invade  the  Grecian  colonies 
of  Sicily,  with  an  army  of  300,COO  men.  Hamil- 
car,  landing  in  Sicily,  was  shortly  defeated,  and 
his  array  sold  for  slaves  by  Gelon,  tyrant  of  Sy- 
racuse. 

Xerxes  at  length  collected  his  forces  upon  the 
sea  shore,  and  having  ostentatiously  cut  a  canal 
through  Mount  Athos,  to  avoid  the  necessity  of. 
doubling  a  promontory  with  his  fleet  ;  having  coa-> 
structed  a  bridge  of  boats,  a  mile  and  a  quarter 
in  length,  which  was  destroyed  by  a  storm  ;  hav.-i 
iiig  thrown  a  pair  of  fetters  into  the  sea,  and  giv-- 
€B  it  a  hundred  stripes  for  thus  daring  to  insult  th^ 


106  AKCIENT  HISTORY. 

Honour  of  his  majesty,  and  having  constructed  b. 
second  bridge,  he  prepared  to  cross.  But  first 
he  would  gratify  his  royal  vanity  by  a  general- 
review  of  all  his  sea  and  laud  forces.  A  high 
tower  had  been  constructed-  near  the  shore  for 
his  reception  ;  this  he  ascended  :  4,^'00  ships  and 
galleys  sbadod  tiie  sea,  and  the  plain  of  Abydos 
was  covered  with  the  immense  multitude.  One 
miliion  seven  hundred  thousand  foot,  and  80,000 
horse,  composed  his  land  army,  while  the  naval 
forces  amounted  to  617.610  men,  the  whole  at- 
tended by  an  equnl  numljer  of  servants,  women, 
grooms,  &-C.  ;  so  ihrit  the  whole  was  found  to  con- 
sist of  the  astonishing  number  of  6,283,220,  fall- 
ing little  short  of  the  census  of  the  whole  United 
Stales  for  the  year  1800.  Doubtless  it  was  the 
largest  army  ever  brought  into  the  field;  the 
greatest  monument  of  regal  folly  upon  the  record 
of  fame  ;  and  it  is  only  upon  the  uniform  testimo- 
ny of  autaor>  upon  this  subject  that  the  statement 
can  be  crediide. 

While  viewing  this  vast  collection,  with  th« 
greatest  transports  of  joy  and  self-gratulatioia, 
Xerxes  was  observed  suddenly  to  burst  into  a  flood 
of  tears  Being  asked  by  bis  uncle  the  cause  of 
this  sudden  transition,  he  is  said  to  have  replied, 
"  one  huntlred  years  hence  not  one  of  this  im- 
mense multitude  will  remain  alive."  A  moral^ 
lesson  upon  the  fleetness  of  time  from  the  mouth  of 
a  vnin  and  ambitious  prince,  of  which  we  ought 
not  to  be  insensible  who  live  in  an  age  of  a  su* 
blimer  philos  :phy— the-  philosophy  of  universal 
hensvolence.  In  seven  days,  without  intermission, 
tJie  army  was  transported  from  Asia  to  Europe. 
Xerxes-3vas  ..obliged  to  march  as  expeditiously  as 
possilde,  .to  supply  his  immense  multitude  witU 
provision^.     This  led  a  Qertaia  citizen  of  Abde- 


PERSIA.  107 

ra  to  observe,  "  We  may  thank  the  gods  for 
Xerxes'  moderation,  in  being  salisfied  with  one 
naeal  a  day." 

'  The  Athenians  and  Spartans,  deserted  as  usual 
by  all  their  allies  in  the  hour  of  danger,  appoint- 
ed Themistocles  and  Leonidas  to  the  command 
of  their  respective  armies.  Xerxes  was  advanc- 
ing from  the  north,  and  threatened,  ere  long,  to  de- 
luge Attica  and  the  Peloponnesus  with  his  millions, 
when  Leonidas,  with  4,000  men,  seized  the  pass 
of  Thermopylae,  the  only  way  by  which  Xerses 
could  com.e  into  Attica,  and  determined  to  perish 
rather  than  yield  the  pass.  Xerxes  approached, 
and,  observing  this  handful  of  men,  sent  heralds  to 
demand  their  arms.  Leonidas  returned  in  answer, 
*'  come  and  take  them."  Stung  with  this  reph^, 
the  king  ordered  the  Medes  to  go  with  manacles, 
and  fetch  them  to  him  bound.  But  after  a  short 
conflict,  they  were  obliged  to  seek  safety  by 
flight.  The  famous  immortal  band,  consisting  of 
10,000  brave  soldiers  completely  armed,  next  at- 
tempted to  subdue  the  stubborn  courage  of  the 
Greeks,  but  were  repulsed  with  great  loss.  The 
Persians  then  tried  their  fortune,  but  met  an  ip"- 
nominious  defeat.  Xerxes  began  now  to  be  sick 
of  his  expedition,  and  to  despair  of  being  able 
with  his  millions  to  conquer  these  4,000  Greeks, 
when  a  perfidious  deserter  informed  him  of  a  se- 
cret passage  round  the  mountain  ;  10,000  men  were 
instantly  despatched,  who  appeared  in  the  rear  of 
the  Greeks.  Leonidas,  perceiving  that  all  was 
lost,  resolved  to  sell  his  life  as  dearly  as  possible, 
and  sending  away  the  auxiliaries,  he  remained 
with  his  300  Spartans  and  about  as  many  Thes- 
pians, and  prepared  for  battle.  In  the  first  onset 
that  was  made  Leonidas  fell.  Five  times  thej 
were  attacked   on  all  sides,  and  five  times  the 


108  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

Persians  were  driven  back  with  dreadful  slaughter. 
At  length,  overpowered  by  numbers,  and  literally 
buried  under  the  weapons  and  bodies  of  their  en- 
emies, they  all  fell,  except  one,  who  escaped  to 
Sparta,  to  announce  what  a  bloody  trophy  his 
countrymen  had  raised  to  their  memory.  Leoni- 
das  holds  the  palm  of  courage  ;  nor  have  the  an- 
nals of  time,  found  his  rival. 

On  the  same  day  of  the  battle  of  Thermopylae, 
the  Grecian  fleet  of  120  sail  had  an  engagement 
with  the  Persian,  of  about  1,000,  in  which  the 
Greeks  had  considerably  the  advantage.  A  short 
time  afterwards,  the  two  fleets  came  to  another 
engagement  at  Salamis,  where  Themistocles  was 
completely  victorious.  The  Greeks  lost  40  ships, 
and  the  Persians  200.  Xerxes,  who  was  an  eye 
witness  of  this  battle,  now  took  the  alarm,  and 
leaving  Mardonius  with  300,000  men,  hastened 
back  to  the  Hellespont,  for  fear  the  Greeks  would 
break  down  his  bridge  of  boats,  and  forever  cut 
off  his  return.  His  army  being  pressed  by  famine, 
and  he  more  pressed  by  terror,  he  left  them  be- 
hind, and  arrivnig  at  the  Hellespont  with  a  few 
attendants,  found  his  bridge  had  been  dispersed 
by  a  storm,  and  w^as  obliged  to  cross  in  a  small 
iishing  boat.  In  this  style  he  again  landed  in  his 
©wn  dominions,  extremely  mortified  at  his  dis- 
grace, and  fully  determined  never  again  to  at- ' 
tempt  the  subjugation  ©f  the  hardy  and  magnani- 
mous Greeks. 

Mardonius,  with  his  300,000  men,  after  having 
ravaged  the  open  country  of  Attica,  came  to  a 
general  battle  with  Aristides  and  Pausanias,  the 
Grecian  commanders  at  the  city  of  Platae.  Al- 
though the  Persians  appeared  to  be  animated  by 
an  unknown  courage,  and  Mardonius  signalized 
himself  by  hjs  p.ersonal  valour,  yet  they  were  ut* 


PERSfA.  109 

('erly  routed,  and  Mardonius  slain.  The  treasure 
of  the  Persian  camp  was  immense,  and  richly 
rewarded  the  Grecian  soldiers  for  their  patriotism, 
their  privations,  and  their  bloody  battles.  On 
the  san;ie  day  of  the  battle  of  Platcea,  the  Grecian 
fleet,  agreeably  to  the  direction  of  the  oracle, 
"  to  delend  themselves  with  wooden  walls,"  ob- 
tained an  equally  illustrious  victory  over  the  re- 
mainder of  the  Persian  fleet  at  the  promontory 
of  Mycale.  This  final  stroke  annihilated  the 
Persian  tbrce,  and,  from  among  such  a  constella- 
tion of  patriot  heroes  as  the  world  has  seldom 
seen,  gained  for  Tbemistocles  the  prize  of  the 
most  glorious  achievement. 

Thus  closed  the  famous  invasion  of  Greece  by 
Xerxes  the  Great.  B.  C.  479.  Why  he  is  surna- 
ined  the  great,  I  shall  leave  you  to  unravel.  From 
this  time  till  the  retreat  of  'the  10,000,  elapsed  a 
period  of  78  years,  in  which  nothing  remarkable 
took  place  except  the  invasion  of  Persia  by  Agesi- 
iaus,  king  of  Sparta.  He  bid  fair  to  have  redu- 
ced the  Persian  em.pire,  but  was  suddenly  called 
to  bear  arms  in  a  different  direction.  The  narra- 
tive of  petty  wars  with  the  states  of  Greece,  the 
Cyprians,  and  Egyptians,  of  revolts  of  provinces, 
of  treasons  and  oppressions,  would  be  uninterest- 
ing, and  we  shall  therefore  proceed  to  the  next 
epocha. 

6.  The  retreat  of  the  10,000  Greeks  from  the 
heart  of  the  Persian  empire,  forming  one  of  the 
most  brilliant  actions  recorded  in  history,  will,  for 
a  moment,  engage  our  attention.  Conddering  the 
difficulties  to  be  surm.ounted,  this  is  universally 
allowed  to  be  the  noblest  retreat  through  an  ene- 
my's country  that  was  ever  performed  ;  and  has 
placed  the  name  of  Xenophon  on  a  level  with  that 
of  the  greatest  commanders.     Darius  Nothus  dv» 


i  1  0  ANCIENT  HISTORY  . 

jng,  left  two  sons,  Artaxerxes  Miienion,  and  Cy- 
rus the  younger.  Artaxerxes  was  no  sooner  seat- 
ed on  the  throne,  than  he  detected  a  conspiracy  to 
depose  him,  at  the  head  of  which  was  his  brother 
Cyrus.  Cyrus  was  seized,  and  condemned  to 
death,  but  by  the  influence  of  Parasatis,  his  mo- 
ther, Artaxerxcs  was  prevailed  upon  to  send  him 
back  to  his  government  in  Asia  Minor.  Cyrus, 
as  soon  as  he  was  at  liberty,  pursuant  to  his  object 
of  dethroning  his  brother,  pretended  a  quarrel 
with  a  neighbouring  satrap,  and  openly  coUected 
forces  wherever  they  were  to  be  obtained  : 
r*3,000  men  were  collected,  of  whom  12,000 
were  Peloponnesian  Greeks,  commanded  by  Cle- 
archus,  the  Spartan,  and  after  a  tedious  march  of  93 
days,  or  nearly  1,800  miles,  Cyrus  arrived  at  Cur- 
raxa,  a  small  town  not  far  from  Babylon,  where 
Artaxerxes  lay  with  an  army  of  1,000,000  men. 
A  battle  was  fought,  long  and  bloody.  The  Greeks 
were  victorious  wherever  they  struck,  and  had  it 
not  been  for  the  impetuous  valour  of  Cyrus,  might 
have  gained  the  field.  But  he  suddenly  perceiv- 
ing his  brother  at  a  little  distance  from  the  edge 
of  the  battle,  cried  out,  "  I  see  him,  I  see  him," 
threw  himself  into  the  midst  of  the  king's  guards, 
and  cutting  his  way,  attacked  Artaxerxes  in  per- 
son. The  fate  of  the  day  depended  upon  the  is- 
sue of  this  unnatural  conflict.  Seldom,  or  never, 
have  mankind  witnessed  such  a  shocking  scene. 
For  some  time  the  roj^al  brothers  fought  with  des- 
perate fury  for  the  crown  of  Persia,  like  a  lyon 
and  tyger  contending  for  the  empire  of  the  de- 
sert. Artaxerxes'  horse  fell  under  him,  and  he 
received  several  wounds,  when  his  guards  dis- 
charged at  once  a  shower  o^  arrows  at  Cyrus,  the 
moment  he  raised  his  faulchion  to  give  the  fatal 
stroke  ;  at  length,  covered  with  wounds,  he  sprung 


PERSIA.  ill 

into  the  aipjs  of  Artaxerxes,  v.h-Tj  received  him 
upon  the  point  of  his  javelin  ;  Cyras  fell,  and  in- 
stantly expired.  His  army,  thus  deprived  of  its 
leader,  fought  for  a  long  time,  with  an  ill-directed 
valour,  till,  being  surrounded  by  overwhelming 
numbers,  they  v,  ere  cut  to  pieces,  or  dispersed, 
except  the  Greeks,  to  the  number  of  10,000,  who, 
repulsing  every  attack,  still  maintained  their 
ground,  and  refused  to  capitulate. 

Artaxerxes,  perceiving  that  the  Greeks  were 
determined  to  resist  to  the  last,  gave  them  per- 
mission to  depart  to  their  own  country  ;  secretly 
giving  orders,  however,  to  his  generals,  and  the 
nations  they  were  obliged  to  march  through,  to 
intercept  them,  and,  if  possible,  to  cut  off  their 
retreat. 

The  generals  of  the  Greeks  being  all  cut  off 
by  treachery,  they  first  chose  several  persons  \o 
conduct  the  army  in  this  dangerous  adventure. 
Among  these  was  Xenophon,  a  young  man  of 
extraordinary  talents  as  a  soldier,  a  statesman, 
and  scholar.  The  narrative  he  has  given  us  of 
this  expedition  is  justly  ranked  among  th^ 
noblest  historical  efforts,  and  has  obtained  for  him 
the  titleof  the  "  Hume  of  Greece."  Without  any 
delay,  they  commenced  their  march,  in  the  form 
of  a  hollow  square,  the  baggage  and  attendants  in 
the  centre.  Having  continued  a  lew  days,  march- 
ing with  little  molestation,  the  Persian  army 
appeared  behind  them,  ready  to  take  every  ad- 
vantage, and  throw  every  obstruction  in  their 
way.  Often  they  were  suddenly  attacked,  but 
the  constant  vigilance  of  Xenophon,  aided  by 
the  intrepidity  of  the  Greeks,  defeated  every 
attempt,  and  prevented  every  ambuscade. 

Tiie    broad   and   deep    river  I'igris    at  length 
stopped  their   progress,  and  having  no  boats  to 


3  12  AXCIENT  HISTORY. 

cross,  this  band  of  heroes  resolved,  to  cross  tlie 
lofty  ridges  of  the  Carducian  mountains.  Leav- 
ing behind  their  beasts  and  slaves,  they  began  to 
ascend  the  mountains.  The  beii^hts  and  narrow 
defiles  had  been  seized  by  the  native  moun- 
taineers, and  detachments  of  the  Persian  army» 
and  thus  every  sqmmit  was  to  be  gained  by  dint 
of  valour,  every  defile  to  be  cleared  by  the  edge 
of  the  sword.  After  a  continued  struggle  for 
seven  days,  they  crossed  the  mountains,  and 
descended  upon  the  plains  of  Armenia.  But 
here  a  new  trial  awaited  them,  upon  the  bank  of 
a  river  200  feet  broad  which  they  must  cross. 
The  Persian  army  was  close  upon  their  heels, 
and  another  Armenian  army  was  posfed  upon 
the  opposite  bank  to  dispute  their  passage.  They 
crossed,  however,  the  water  in  some  places  up  to 
their  armpits,  beneath  showers  of  missile  weap- 
ons, drove  the  Armenians,  and  gained  the  open 
country. 

After  traversing  several  deserts,  and  passing 
the  Euphrates  near  its  source,  they  were  obliged 
to  face  death  in  a  different,  and  more  dreadful 
form.  The  snow  lay  upon  the  ground  to  a  great 
depth,  at  the  same  time  a  cutting  north  wind  blew 
in  their  faces,  and  almost  prevented  their 
breathing.  Many  lost  their  eye-sight,  many 
had  their  hands  and  feet  frozen,  so  that  thej' 
perished — many  died  of  hunger — many  sunk  in 
the  snow,  "  stretched  out,  bleaching  in  the 
northern  blast,'"  a  miserable  prize  to  gratify  the 
exasperated  Persians.  Thus  they  marched  for 
several  days.  They  crossed  the  territories  of 
tlie  Phasiaus,  and  Chalybes,  the  most  fierce, 
barbarous,  and  warlike  people  of  Asia,  defeating 
them  in  several  engagements,  and  constantly 
ftruggling  v>'ith  the  winds,   and  sleet,  and  snows 


PERSIA.  HS 

of  that  iuhospKable  region,  till  they  gained  the 
summit  of  Jecqua,  the  highest  mountain  in  that 
country.  Suddenly  a  conTused  shout  was  raised 
by  the  van,  which  soon  prevailed  throughout  the 
army,  mingled  with  the  joyful  exclamation  "  the 
sea,  the  sea!"  The  soldiers  in  an  extacy  of 
joy,  embraced  their  general,  and  dropping  upon 
their  knees,  testified  their  gratitude  to  their  gods,^ 
with  floods  of  tears.  The  distant  prospect  of 
the  Euxine,  v^hose  heaving  bosom  would  soon 
bear  them  to  their  native  shores,  melted  their 
hearts,  always  inflexible  in  toil,  in  hunger,  and  in 
blood.  They  erected  a  pile  of  stones  upon  the 
top  of  the  mountain,  as  a  trophy  to  tell  their 
story  to  succeeding  generations. 

After  surmounting  one  more  ridge,  the  moun- 
tains of  Colchis,  and  defeating  a  final  attempt  to 
oppose  their  return,  they  descended  upon  the 
shores  of  the  Euxine.  Here  they  embarked,  and 
after  a  prosperous  voyage,  again  landed  in  Asia 
Minor,  whence  they  had  started  15  months  be- 
fore ;  after  having  accomplished  a  retreat  of  2,325 
miles  through  an  enemy's  country.  Although 
constantly  harassed  by  their  enemies,  and  pressed 
by  various  other  misfortunes,  they  triumphed 
over  all,  and  performed  one  of  the  most  illustrious 
exploits  in  the  annals  of  military  fame. 

7.  However  interesting  this  portion  of  history 
may  be.  we  must  draw  it  to  a  close,  after  taking 
a  slight  view  of  its  last  and  dying  struggle. 
About  50  years  after  the  retreat  of  the  10,000, 
Darius  Codomannus  ascended  the  throne,  .and 
was  destined  to  be  the  last  of  his  race,  and  to 
seal  with  his  blood  the  fate  of  Persia.  Another 
gun  was  rising  in  Europe,  whose  zenith  lustre  was 
to  eclipse  all  other  luminaries. 

Turn   we  now  from   the   fading   splendors  of 
19* 


il4  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

the  Persian  court,  and  from  the  energies  of  the 
empire  of  Cyrus,  wasted  and  dissipated  by 
weakness  and  folly,  to  the  last  struggles  in  which 
Persia  sunk  under  the  arm  of  the  tirst  of  con- 
querors. 

The  Grecian  states  had  appointed  Alexander 
generalissimo  of  the  army,  and  his  first  project 
was  the  conquest  of  the  Persian  empire.  The 
battle  of  Granicus  was  the  first  blow  that  was 
struck,  in  which  the  Persians  were  defeated,  and 
Alexander  pushed  his  march  into  the  heart  of  the 
empire. 

Alarmed  at  the  progress  of  the  Macedonian 
conqueror,  Darius  assembled  his  forces  at  Baby- 
Ion,  to  the  number  of  500,000  men,  headed  them 
in  person,  and  marched  to  meet  Alexander.  The 
march  of  this  great  army  was  conducted  in  the 
usual  style  of  Asiatic  monarchs  in  this  day.  And 
as  the  idea  we  may  obtain  of  the  custom  of  the 
age,  is  curious  and  important,  a  short  description 
of  the  order  of  Darius'  march  will  not  be  unac- 
ceptable in  this  place.  The  sacred  fire,  borne 
on  five  altars,  and  attended  by  the  magi  and  365 
youths  dressed  in  scarlet,  preceded  the  army : 
then  came  the  chariot  of  Jupiter,  drawn  by  white 
horses,  and  followed  by  the  "  Steed  of  the  Sun," 
splendidly  caparisoned.  Ten  chariots  came  next, 
sculptured  with  gold  and  silver.  Twelve  na- 
tions, forming  the  vanguard  of  the  cavalry,  then 
appeared,  and  were  followed  by  the  "  Immortal 
Band,"  of  10,000  foot,  all  wearing  golden  collars 
and  robes,  stiff  with  embroidering  and  precious 
stones.  Next  advanced  a  body  of  15,000,  enti- 
tled the  "  King's  Relations,"  sumptuously  clothed. 
Then  came  Darius,  seated  on  a  chariot-lhrone, 
supported  by  the  Persian  deities,  cast  in  pure  gold, 
nnd  shaded  by  the  spreading  wings  of  a  golden 


PERSIA.  .  115 

eagle.  His  purple  robe  was  spangled  with  jew- 
els of  surpassing  beauty,  and  immense  value.  He 
was  attended  by  200  of  his  nearest  reiatiOxis,  and 
followed  by  10,000  horsemen.  The  rear  of  the 
army,  30,000  foot,  came  next,  and  were  followed 
by  400  of  the  king's  horses,  led.  At  some  dis- 
tance behind  were  Lysigambis,  the  king'i  moUier, 
bis  wives  and  female  relatives,  to  the  number  of 
nearly  400,  in  the  most  costly  altire  ;  600  mules, 
and  300  camels,  bearing  the  royal  treasure,  and 
guarded  by  archers,  next  approach  ;  and  the 
splendid  cavalcade  was  closed  by  an  immense 
number  of  chariots  and  horses,  carrying  the  ladies 
of  the  ofTicers,  and  attended  by  companies  of  light- 
armed  infantry. 

Instead  of  gold  and  silver,  and  embroidered 
robes,  the  phalanx  of  Alexander  was  covered  with 
polished  mail  from  head  to  foot.  Their  hardy 
frames  were  inured  to  abstinence  and  severity  of 
climate,  and  strangers  to  the  inebriating  influence 
of  luxurj'. 

When  Alexander  heard  that  Darius  had  arrived 
at  the  city  of  Issus,  he  hastened  to  meet  him.  A 
battle  was  fought.  The  close  order  and  heavy- 
armour  of  the  Macedonian  phalanx  gave  them  so 
decidedly  the  advantage,  that  the  Persians  were 
soon  routed,  and  all  resistance  ceased,  except 
from  some  Greek  auxiliaries,  who  firmly  stood 
their  ground,  till  from  twenty,  they  were  reduced 
to  eight  thousand.  Then  they  retreated,  and  re- 
turned home,  leaving  Alexander  sole  master  of 
the  field.  Darius  fled  ;  his  camp  and  family  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  victor.  The  cities  of  Da- 
mascus, Gaza,  Susa,  and  Persepolis,  containing 
the  treasures  of  the  crown,  were  taken. 

The  unfortunkte  Darius,  after  many  attempts  to 
retrieve  himself,  was  obliged  to  take  refuge  in 


116  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

Media,  whither  he  was  pursued  by  Alexander. 
Bessus,  the  general  of  Darius,  thinking  to  pur- 
chase the  favour  of  Alexander,  treacherously 
assassinated  his  royal  benefactor,  and  left  hitn 
*'  weltering  in  his  blood."  Alexander  shortly 
after  coming  up,  was  shocked  at  the  sight  of  the 
unhappy  Darius, 

Deserted  at  his  utmost  need. 
By  those  his  former  bountj^  fed  ; 
On  the  cold  earth  expos'd  he  lies, 
With  not  a  friend  to  close  his  6305, 

Thus  perished  Darius  Codomannus,  in  the  6tb 
year  of  his  reign.  (B.  C.  330,)  and  with  him  fell 
the  empire  of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  which  had 
continued,  from  the  accession  of  Cyrus,  204 
years.  The  taking  of  Babylon  by  Alexander, 
will  be  noticed  in  our  view  of  the  Grecian  history. 

Having  now  gone  over  the  portion  of  history 
proposed,  it  may  be  proper  to  present  a  short 
analysis  of  the  whole. 

From  the  accession  of  Cyrus,  B.  C.  534,  to 
the  conquest  of  Babylon  by  Alexander,  B,  C. 
330,  was  204  years.  This  period  is  divided,  ac- 
cording to  the  remarkable  events,  as  follows  : 

1  From  the  accession  of  Cyrus,  B.  C.  534, 
to  the  invasion  of  Ethiopia  by  Cambyses,  B.  C. 
524,  containing  10  years.  In  this  time  the  Jews 
were  restored,  Cyrus  died,  and  Cambyses  con- 
quered Egypt. 

2.  From  the  invasion  of  Ethiopia  by  Camby- 
ses, B.  C.  524,  to  the  invasion  of  Scythia  by  Da- 
Tius  Hystaspes,  B.  C.  514,  containing  10  years: 
during  this  time  Cambyses  died,  Smerdis,  the 
Magian,  succeeded,  was  assassinated,  and  Darius 
Hystaspes  ^vas  elected  to  the  throne. 


117 


S.  From  the  invasion  of  Scytbia,  B.  C.  614, 
to  the  battle  of  .Mcrathon,  B.  C.  490,  containing 
24.  years  : :  dm'ing  this  period  happened  (]ie  in- 
vasion of  India  by  Darius,  and  his  rupture  with 
the  Greeks,  which  led  to  the  battle  of. Marathon. 

4.  From  the  battle  of  Marathon,  B,  C.  490, 
to  the  invasion  of  Greece  by  Xerxes,  B.  C.  480^ 
containing  10  years  :  the  death  of  Darius,  the 
accession  of  Xerxes,  and  his  truly  famous  inva- 
sion of  Greece,  as  before  related. 

5.  From  the  invasion  of  Xerxes,  B.  C.  4&0, 
to  the  retreat  of  the  10.000,  B.  C.  401,  contain- 
ing 79  years:  six  Persian  kings  flourished  without 
fame  in  this  period,  waged  unsuccessful  wars, 
and  were  lyrants  at  home. 

6.  From  the  retreat  of  the  10,000,  B.  C.  401, 
to  the  conquest  of  Babylon  by  Alexander,  B.  C. 
330,  containing  71  years  ;  four  Persian  kings 
reigned  and  perished  without  a  grateful  memorial; 
dominion  was  transferred  from  Asia  to  Europe. 

It  would  be  desirable  to  give  some  account  of 
Persia,  from  the  conquest  of  Alexander  to  the 
present  (.Uy.  Time,  however,  will  permit  us  only 
to  mention  the  grand  epochas. 

After  the  dismemberment  of  Alexander's  em- 
pire, Persia  fell  to  Selmeus,  B.  C.  232.  His  de- 
scendants governed  Persia,  under  the  name  of 
Parthia,  till  235  years  after  Christ.  The  Romans 
often  attempted  to  subdue  them,  but  always  fail- 
ed, and  the  names  of  Sapor,  Hormisdas,  and 
Chosroes,  are  as  illustrious  in  Asia  as  those  of 
Auguotus,  Trajan,  and  Constantine  in  Europe. 
In  the  year  of  our  Lord  655,  Persia  was  conquered 
by  the  Saracens,  under  Omar,  and  remained  sub- 
ject to  them  till  it  was  again  conquered  by  Ta- 
merlane, the  Tartar,  A.  D.  1400.  His  succes- 
sors, of  the  Sophi  race,  were  driven  out  hy  the 
relebrated   Thamas  Kouli   Khan,    about  A.  D. 


1I§  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

1700.  Kouli  Khan  conquered  India,  Usbeck. 
Tartary,  and  almost  the  whole  of  Turkey.  He 
was  iinally  murdered  for  his  enormotj5  cruelties, 
A.  D.  1747,  and  was  succeeded  by  Kerim  Khan. 
He  died  in  1779,  eighty  years  old,  and  was  con- 
sidered as  the  greatest  hero  of  iiis  age,  and  the 
glory  of  Persia.  In  1792,  the  successor  of  Ke- 
rim was  expelled  from  the  throne  by  Akan  Ma- 
homined  Khan,  who  is,  in  all  probability,  now 
master  of  the  Persian  empire. 

IV.  The  government,  arts,  sciences,  manners, 
Customs,  and  ai)tiquities  of  the  Persians,  are  next 
to  be  considered  We  shall  make  a  (ew  observa- 
tions upon  each  in  their  order. 

1.  The  strenuous  administration  which  was 
established  by  Cyrus,  had  too  much  influence  up- 
on the  internal  constitution  of  the  empire  to  be 
materially  altered  by  the  weakness  and  extrava- 
gance of  his  successors.  The  establishment  of  re- 
gular posts  and  couriers,  attributed  to  Cyrus, 
rendered  the  conveyance  of  intelligence  over  that 
vast  empire  rapid  and  certain.  By  this  means, 
rebellions  were  quickly  crushed,  conspiracies 
easily  frustrated,  and  the  conduct  of  satraps,  or 
governors,  more  open  to  cognizance.  The  crown 
was  hereditary,  always  descending  to  the  eldest 
son.  The  prerogative  of  the  king  was  absolute. 
Secluded  from  the  eyes  of  the  vulgar,  he  was  ge- 
nerally reverenced  as  a  deity,  and  his  commands, 
however  unjust,  cruel,  or  extravagant,  had  the  au- 
thority of  law,  as  well  as  the  sanction  of  a  reli- 
gious obligation. 

A  great  veneration  for  their  monarch  v/as 
always  a  remarkable  trait  in  the  character  of 
the  Persians,  and  was  cherished  by  the  many 
laws  that  were  made  respecting  the  majesty  of 
the  crown,  and  the  penalties  annexed,  as  well  p: 


PERSIA.  lU 

{he  seclusion  (he  monarchs  themselves  always 
maintained.  Under  the  successors  of  ('yrus, 
tiie  administration  of  affairs  was  mostly  entrusted 
to  favourites,  those  pestilent  harpies,  which 
always  infest  the  courts  of  absolute  princes,  and 
render  their  despotism  doubly  despotic.  Tq 
incur  the  displeasure  of  one  of  these  was  to 
offend  the  kins:;  in  the  most  heinous  manner,  an(i 
his  indignation  was  to  be  dreaded  almost  as 
much  as  that  of  the  gods. 

The  satraps,  or  governors,  of  the  different 
provinces  of  the  empire,  holding  their  offices 
upon  the  tenure  of  royal  pleasure,  and  usually 
jealous  of  each  other's  iniluem  e,  were  employed 
in  securing  the  confidence  of  the  people  by  n 
equal  distribution  of  justice,  reward  of  meit, 
and  punishment  of  crime,  >;s  a  first  recommenda- 
tion to  the  throne  ;  likewise  in  conciliating  the 
favour  of  the  king,  by  assiduously  embracing 
tlie  views  of  his  tavourites  '^Ihus  the  prosecu- 
tion of  private  interest  subserved  the  important 
purpc>ses  of  general  justice  and  prosperity. 
Tills  cannot  be  said  to  have  always  been  the 
case.  But  it  appears  to  have  been  the  spirit  of 
the  Persian  constitution  and  government,  during 
the  period  we  have  been  contemplating.  Their 
laws  were  generally  equal  and  salutary,  and  are 
acknowledged  to  have  exceeded  Khose  of  all  the 
heathen  nations.  To  inspect  the  execution  of 
these  laws  formed  a  principal  part  of  the  king's 
business.  "  Rise,  sir,"  said  an  officer  to  hina 
every  morning,  *'  and  think  of  performing  those 
duties  for  which  Aromasdes  has  placed  you  on 
the  throne."  Education  was  very  particularly 
attended  to,  especially  that  of  the  king's  sons. 
At  14  years  of  age,  four  men  of  the  first  distinc- 
tion, were  appointed  t©  instruct  them.     Tke  iiist 


120  ANCIENT  HTSTORt. 

taught  them  prudence  ;  the  second,  justice  ;  the 
third,  teEnperance :  and  the  fourih,  fortitude. 
Although  it  too  often  happened  that  instead  oP 
prudence  they  learned  rashness;  instead  of 
justice^  iniawity;  instead  of  temperance,  voluptu- 
t^usness ;  and  instead  of  fortitude,  piisiUanimitij. 

2.  The  Persians  seem  never  to  hnre  been  &' 
very  enterprising  people.  Their  contempt  i'di" 
commerce  rendered  it  impossible  for  them  ever' 
to  derive  the  benefits  of  foreign  improvement ;. 
and,  consequently,  their  progress  in  the  tine  arfs, 
which  the  Greeks  were  carrying  rapidly  to  per- 
fection, was  either  very  slow,  or  }>erfeclly 
stationary.  They  have  in  all  ages  been  ceiebra- 
led  for  some  kinds  of  manufacture,  particularly 
the  making  of  gold-thread,  embroidery,  and 
leather.  Their  carpets,  at  this  day,  cover  the 
floors  of  the  rich  in  all  parts  of  the  world.  But 
ip  the  higher  branches  of  manufacture  they 
have  never  excelled,  and  are  said,,  by  travellers, 
at  the  present  day  to  be  almost  entirely  ignorant 
qI  painting.  '  ', 

P  'Thoy  were  an  agricultural  people,  and  befot-e 
the  fail  of  Babylon  so  poor  that  they  had  no 
clothing  but  skins,  no  drink  but  water,  and  lib 
medium  of  exchange  but  the  produce  of  the 
earth.  Gold  was  first  coined  by  Cyaxares,  the 
cotemporary  of  Cyrus,  and  by  Darius,  whence 
thin  pieces  of  money  were  called  darics.  But 
after  the  conquest  of  Assyria,  which  had  for  cen- 
turies been  the  seat  of  luxury,  the  Persians  be- 
gan to  wrap  their  hardy  bodies  in  silk  and 
embroidered  garments,  till,  under  the  last  of  their 
monarchs,  they  had  utterly  lost  the  spirit  of  the 
sentiment,  that  *'  virtuous  poverty  is  better  than 
ykeloatik^  with  diamonds."     Those  artg.  whjcls 


PERSIA.  121 

.advance,  were  supplanted  by  those  which  destroy 
a  nation. 

3.  The  Persians,  before  the  days  of  Zoroaster, 
who  lived  in  the  reign  of  Darius  Hystaspes, 
were  generally  ignorant  in  the  extreme.  Even 
the  magi,  who  were  the  doctors  of  the  nation, 
were  confined  to  some  vague  opinions  in  philoso- 
phy and  astronomy,  together  with  the  precepts 
of  the  then  prevalent  religion.  Masters  of  the 
prejudices  and  superstitions  of  the  people, 
they  spent  their  lives,  not  in  the  researches  of 
science,  but  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  plentiful 
revenue,  or  in  the  management  of  state  affairs, 
with  which  thej  had  much  to  do,  on  account  of 
their  popular  influence.  Zoroaster  instructed  them 
in  the  first  principles  of  astronomy,  mathematics 
and  physic:  but  their  chief  science  was  their 
system  of  theology,  which  we  shall  have  occasioa 
to  notice. 

4.  Authors  are  very  copious  upon  the  manners 
and  customs  of  the  Persians.  We  shall  notice  a 
few  of  them.  The  Persians  were  moderate  in 
their  eating,  but  always  drank  to  excess.  They 
were  remarkably  attached  to  their  friends ;  and 
ingratitude  was  considered  one  of  the  most  heinous 
crimes,  being  punished  by  the  laws  in  the  se- 
verest manner.  This  excellent  practice  has  been 
peculiar  to  them.  They  always  have  been  the 
most  polished  people  of  all  the  cast,  and  their 
hospitality  to  strangers  is  very  remarkable.  A 
stranger  can  hardly  insult  a  Persian  more  than 
by  leaving  his  house  without  eating  and  drinking; 
for  they  suppose,  that  for  every  entertainment 
they  give  to  a  stranger,  Oromasdes  commissionji 
a  blessing  to  rest  upon  their  family.  Their  usual 
mode  of  salutation,  if  the  persons  were  of  equal 
Tank,  was  a  kist  upon  the  lips ;  if  one  were  a  lit 

H 


122  ANCIENT  lllfcTOitY. 

tie  inferior,  upon  the  chenk.      The  common  peo- 
ple always  prostrated  themselves  beibre  the  no- 
bility.    The  Persians  may  be  said  to  have  been, 
emphatically,  a  ceremonious  people,  the  strictest 
attention  being  always  paid  to  every  punctilio  be- 
tween relatives  and  friends,  as   well  as  strany;ers. 
All  their  important  transactions  were  replete  with 
ceremony.      It  is  said  that  they  had  five  kinds  of 
marriages,  all   distinguished  by  different  scries  of 
ceremonies  ;   one  ol"  which   is  worthy  of  notict;, 
namely,    "  the  marriage  of  the  dead."     When  a 
young  person  died  in  celibacy,  one   was  hired  to 
marry  him  or  her,  shortly  after  the  funeral :   this 
arose    from  an  opinion  of  the  happiness  of  a  mar- 
riage state  in  a  future  world.       Their  funeral  ce- 
remonies were  remarkably  solemn.      When  any 
person  died,  the  body  was   placed  upon  a  high 
tower,  and  after  a  long  series  of  rites,  in  which  a 
word  is  not  spoken,  because  the  grave  is  the  re- 
gion   of   perfect    silence,     the    oiiiciating   priest 
ended   the    solemn    ceremony    by    pronouncing, 
*'  Our  brother,  while  he  lived,  was  of  the  four  ele- 
ments ;  now   he  is  dead,  let  each  take   his  own; 
earth  to  earth,  air  to  air,  water  to  water,  fire  to 
fire."     The  corpse  was  then  left  to  waste,  or  be 
devoured  by  the  fowls  of  heaven.     Their  annual 
and  casual  festivals  were  very  numerous,  and  ge- 
nerally continued  from  three  to  five  and  ten  days, 
in  the  most  sumptuous  manner  that  rank  and  for- 
tune could  justify. 

5.  There  remain  to  this  day  some  of  the  no- 
blest specimens  of  architecture  in  Persia  that  the 
world  affords.  The  majestic  ruins  of  Palmyra 
and  Persepolis  testify,  in  strong  language,  the 
power,  perseverance,  and  grandeur  of  the  nations 
•  which  once  peopled  the  plains  of  Asia.  Irregu- 
lax  m5iise&  of  huge  stones,   marble   porticoes. 


123 


covered  with  sculptured  ornamenis,  Tvith  here  and 
there  the  broken  shaft  of  a  lofty  pillar,  are  all  that 
remain  of  those  stupendous  edifices  which  seem- 
ed destined  to  endure  when  thousands  of  genera- 
tions should  have  rolled  away.  The  palace  of 
Persepolis,  one  of  the  noblest  structures  ever 
reared,  at  the  instigation  of  Thais,  a  celebrated 
courtezan,  was  burnt  in  a  fit  of  intoxication  by 
Alexander  the  Great.  Two  pillars  of  beautiful 
fluted  marble,  14  feet  in  circumference,  and  54 
feet  high,  adorned  with  specimens  of  exquisite 
sculpture,  are  still  standing  before  the  mouldering, 
formless  ruins  of  the  palace  At  this  day,  the 
contemplation  of  these  melancholy  tropiiies  fills 
the  iniagination  of  the  traveller  with  vi-ions  of 
ancient  grandeur,  pleasant,  and  mournful,  and 
sublime.  But  a  dark  cloud  is  seen  suspended 
over  them,  while  the  finger  of  time  inscribes  up- 
on the  shattered  marble,  ^'  Why  dost  thou  build 
the  hali,  son  of  the  winged  days?  Yet  a  few 
years,  the  blast  of  the  desart  comes,  and  howls  in 
thy  empty  court."* 

V.  For  several  centuries  after  the  deluge,  the 
knowledge  of  God  and  the  principles  of  true  reli- 
gion were  preserved  by  the  descendants  of  Noah. 
But  when  mankind  became  more  immerous,  tradi- 
tionary knowledge  was  grndually  obscured  and 
lost,  by  an  increased  corruption  of  sentiments  and 
depravation  of  manners.  Ignorant  of  true  philo- 
sophy, and  desirous  of  assigning  adequate  causes 
ibr  the  various  appearances  in  the  natural  world, 
they  were  led  to  attribute  an  agency  to  thcnj 
Vi'hich  belonged  only  to  the  Governor  of  the  uni- 
verse, and  to  revere  them  as  the  at'biters  of  their 
destiny.     The  sun   and  moOn,    whose    powerful 

*  Ossiiin. 


124  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

effects  were  the  most  obvious,  were  first  adored, 
till  gradually  their  religion  grew  into  an  enor- 
mous system  of  idolatry.  It  is,  however,  univer- 
sally admitted,  in  honour  to  the  Persians,  that 
they  were  the  last  nation  who  fell  into  idolatry  ; 
and  it  is  doubted,  by  many  writers,  whether  they 
ever  did. 

The  prevalent  religion  of  Persia,  before  Zoro- 
aster, their  prophet  and  reformer,  is  usually 
known  by  the  name  of  magiism,  or,  the  worship 
of  God  under  the  symbol  of  fire.  It  originated  in 
Persia,  and  spread  into  India.  The  religion  of 
Assyria  was  sabiism,  or,  the  worship  of  the  host 
of  heaven,  under  the  symbols  of  images.  Sabi- 
ism, at  different  times,  gained  some  footing  in 
Persia,  but  could  never  overcome  their  abhor- 
rence of  abasing  the  Deity,  by  a  representation  of 
him  under  any  image,  except  fire,  which  they 
deemed  the  purest  and  simplest  element. 

After  the  death  of  Smerdis,  the  magian  and 
usurper,  the  successor  of  Cambyses,  the  son 
of  Cyrus,  the  magian  religion  fell  into  disrepute, 
and  was  gradually  losing  ground  in  Persia,  when 
it  was  again  revived  by  one  of  the  most  extraor- 
dinary men  that  has  ever  appeared.  Zerdusht, 
or,  as  he  is  called  by  the  Greeks,  Zoroaster,  the 
founder,  or  rather  the  restorer  of  the  magian  reli- 
gion. The  result  of  the  researches  of  the  great- 
est orientalists,  respecting  the  life  and  character 
of  this  remarkable  personage,  is  as  follows  : 

He  was  a  Jew,  born  in  Palestine,  and  for  seve- 
ral years  served  in  the  capacity  of  a  servant  to 
one  of  the  prophets  who  were  carried  to  Babylon 
in  the  captivity  of  Nebuchadnezzar.  Prideaux 
supposes,  that  it  was  the  prophet  Daniel  with 
whom  he  lived.  In  this  manner  he  became  tho- 
roughly  acquainted,   not  only   with  the  gener;?^. 


125 


.-.chcme  of  the  Jewish  religion,  as  taught  in  tke 
Pentateuch,  being  born  and  educated  in  it,  but 
likewise  with  the  spirit  aiid  purify  of  that  reli- 
gion, as  professed  and  [iractised  by  his  master 
Daniel.  Endued  by  nature  with  a  mind  capable 
of  embracing  the  most  extensive  views,  and  with 
learning  and  subtlety  sutlicient  to  carry  those 
views  into  full  eilx-^ct,  he  nsnired  to  secure  to  hiui- 
s elf,  by  tiie  pretence  of  a  prophetic  mission,  a 
reputatioti  and  dignity  siniiUir  to  that  which  Da- 
niel possessed.  Accordingly,  he  retired  from  the 
world,  and  lived  for  many  years  in  a  cave,  vvheie 
lie  pretended  to  have  received  revelations,  and  to, 
have  been  instructed  in  the  doctrines  and  cere- 
monies of  the  religion  he  was  about  to  establish. 
Here  he  composed  the  zendavesta,  or  niagian 
bible,  comprising  12  volumes  of  100  skins  of  vel- 
lum each.  The  word  zendavesta  signincs,  "'  a 
tinder  box."  This  book,  containing  articles  of. 
i'aith  and  practice,  together  with  the  life  of  the 
author,  Zoroaster  feigned  to  have  received  from 
heaven.  Ibey  say,  that  the  prophet,  in  a  vision, 
was  taken  into  the  expanse  of  heaven,  where  he, 
saw  the  empyreal  circle,  diffusing  an  interminable 
lustre  ;  from  the  midst  of  which,  Oromasdes  talked 
with  him,  gave  him  the  holy  zendavesta,  and  the 
eternal  fire  to  burn  upon  his  altar. 

After  having  niatured  his  plan,  Zoroaster  made 
his  appearance  at  Ecbatana,  in  Media,  which  had 
always  been  the  principal  seat  of  the  raagian  re- 
ligion, in  the  reign  of  Darius  Hystaspes.  Al- 
though the  magian  religion  had  fallen  into  dis- 
grace amiong  the  nobility,  yet  the  prejudice  of  the 
people,  confirmed  by  long  habit,  was  in  its  favour. 
and  was  the  foundation  of  Zoroaster's  scheme. 
A  better  one  he  could  not  have  chosen.  His  first  ' 
inn9Tation^  respected  their  faith.  They  had  been 
J.  i " 


l^Q  AMCJENT   HrSTORY. 

accustomed  to  believing  that  two  etcrnril  priuct- 
r)les  of  good  and  evil  existed,  and  were  contend- 
Ino-  for  the  r;overnment  of  .the  world.     But  Zoro- 
;istc  r  t.'.u^ht   them,   ihat  there  was  but  one  God, 
"  incorruptible,    eternal,    and    unbegotfen  ;     the 
autiiorofall  good,  the  most  excellent  of  all  beings, 
and  the  wisest  of  all   intelligent  natures;   the   fa- 
ther of  equity,   tlie  parent  oi  good   laws,  self-in- 
,<-iructed,  self-stifiieient,  and  the  first  former  of  na- 
lure."     That  there  are  two  powerful  created  in- 
teliigenccs,  the  one  light,   which  is  the  author  of 
good  ;  the  other,  darkness,  which  is  the  au'hor  ot 
evil.       That  in  this  world,   these  two  angels  are 
contending  for  the  victory,  but  there  will  arrive  a 
day  of  judgjiient,  in  which  the  angel  of  darkness 
ehall  bedrivenvvilh  hi?  follou'ers  into  a  region  of 
darkness  and  misery,  to  suffer  everlasting  torments 
lor  their  evil  deeds.     But,  that  the  angel  of  light 
shall  go,  With  his  followers,   to  dwell   forever  in 
tiiat    pure   light  atid   joy   which   eternally    ema- 
tKit^s  fiom  the  burning  throne  of  Oromasdes. 

.-nother  alteration  which    Zoroaster    effected 
>vas    the  creation  of  nrc-tenijdcs,  in   which  vvor- 
'#np  vvaSto  be  perforuied.     Before    his  time  the 
Persians  hnd  always  paid  tlieir  devotions  in  the 
upen  air,  on  liic  tops  of  mountains,  and  in  solita- 
rv  rjlaces,  because  they  thought  it  derogatory  to 
|he  rn«i»^.-ly  of  hpaven  to  suppose  OrouiasdevS  cir- 
•  'krmscribed  l;y  temples.  But  Zoroaster,  by  convin- 
cing them   ihat   though  Oromasdes  was  not  con- 
ihud  to- any  place,  yet  it  wasabsolutely  necessa- 
iV   to  have  a  temple  ;  in   order   to  preserve  the 
jrj'.c red  lire,  th(;  symbol  or  shadow  of  Deity,  which 
he  had  brought  from    heaven,  from  being    extin- 
guished by  any  casuahyv  they  erected  pyrea,  or 
i^i-e-le moles,  al!  over  the  dmrure:  <ihdi  have  them 


PERSIA.  IZi 

'  To  give  you  some  idea  of  their  practical  rules, 
T  have  transcribed  the  live  grand  precepts  of  the 
zendavesta,  which  they  considerought  logovern- 
the  conduct  of  every  individual. 

1.  '*  To  have  shame  ever  with  them,  as  a 
remedy  against  sin  ;  for  a  man  would  never  op- 
press  his  inferiors,  if  he  had  any  shame  ;  a  man 
would  never  steal,  if  he  had  any  shame  ;  a  man 
would  never  lie,  if  he  had  any  shame.  But  be- 
cause this  is  laid  aside,  men  are  ready  to  commit 
any  crimes." 

2.  "  To  have  fear  always  present  with  them  ; 
and  that  every  time  the  eye  twinkled,  or  closed 
its  lids  together,  that  they  should  stand  in  fear, 
kst  they  should  not  go  to  heaven." 

S.  ""  That  whensoever  they  are  to  do  any  thing, 
to  think  whether  the  thing  be  good  or  bad  ;  whe- 
ther commanded  or  forbidden  in  the  zendavesta." 

4.  *'  That  whatsoever  of  God's  creatures  they 
should  first  behold  in  the  morning,  it  should  be  a 
monitor  to  put  them  in  mind  of  their  thanksgivings 
to  Oromasdes,  that  had  given  such  good  things  for 
men's  use." 

5.  "  That  whensoever  they  pray  by  day,  they 
should  turn  their  faces  towards  the  sun  ;  and  when 
by  night,  towards  the  moon,  for  these  were  Oro- 
masdes' witnesses,  most  contrary  to  Lucifer,  who 
loveth  darkness  more  than  light." 

Thus,  as  was  proposed,  have  we  viewed  an 
important  period  of  history. 

In  glancing  the  eye  back  upon  the  prospect 
which  has  been  presented,  we  are  struck  with  a 
remarkable  peculiarity.  The  Persian  empire 
rose  suddenly,  and  fell  as  suddenly.  Instead  of 
toiling  through  a  long,  tempestuous,  and  feeble 
infancy,  like  most  other  nations,  it  broke  into 
existence;  like  Pallas  from   the  brain  of  Jupiter, 


ilQ  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

in  full  armour,  strength,   and   beautr.     Led  by 
Cyrus,  a  mild  and  vivifying  sun,  it  flourished,  the 
envy  and  admiration  of  the  world  ;  till,  at  length, 
as  in  a  moment,  it  withered  and  perished  beneatU. 
the   scorching   influence  of  another   sun,   wliich , 
suddenly  appeared,  flaming  in  the  western  hemis- : 
pht/^re.     The  wild  hero  of  Macedon   swept  these 
fail  regions  with  the  bezom  of  destruction,  and,lt 
for  a  season,  the  praises  of  Cyrus  were  drownecij^^ 
in  the  fame  of  Alexander  the  Great.     But  at  tht^sl 
distant  day  we  can  better  appreciate  their  meritsjife 
and  learn  to  love  the  one,  while   we  ailmirejlbj^^ri 
other.  ■■   '      - 

The  way  is  now  prepared  to  pass  into  Europe, 
where  we  shall  be  welcomed  by  scenes  which 
expand  and  elevate,  instead  of  prostrating  the 
human  mind.  There  we  shall  behold  the  Genius 
of  Liberty  training  her  bold  proselyte  to  virtue, 
intelligence,  and  perennial  glory.  You  have 
wandered  long  upon  the  banks  of  the  Nile,  and 
been  introduced  to  the  court  of  Sesostris,  but  not 
a  scene  has  been  presented  congenial  to  the  soul. 
A  dark  miniature  of  ignorance,  superstition,  and 
tyranny,  has  only  met  the  eye.  We  have  led 
you  across  the  vast  regions  of  Asia,  and  have 
loitered  upon  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  but 
degradation,  war,  and  cruelty  everywhere  mark 
the  paralyzing  presence  of  despotic  monarchy. 
While  here  and  there  an  illustrious  character  has 
appeared,  like  a  meteor,  glancing  through  the 
gloom,  and  cresting,  with  a  momentary  flame,  the 
foaming  billows.  The  mellow  tones  of  an  ^oliaii 
lyre  may  soothe  to  slumber — the  syren  voice  of 
slavery,  clothed  like  an  angel  of  light,  may  allure 
to  pleasure,  even  behind  the  grate  of  the  dun- 
geon — the  silver  trumpet  of  J'ame  may  send  its 
animating  notes  full  #n  the  ear,  and  the  praise  of 


PERSIA.  12S 

a  tyrant,  borne  upon  the  blast,  be  heard  with  de- 
light :  but  if  there  existed  a  land  in  which  liberty 
long  flourished,  in  which  y^enius,  and  wisdom, 
and  intelligence,  and  virtue,  were  not  subject  to 
the  direful  visitations  of  despotism — in  which  the 
nursling  of  freedom  was  not  strangled  in  its  cra- 
dle, to  that  land  we  turn  with  selitiments  of  con- 
genial pleasure  and  exalted  admiration.  Such  a 
land  was  ancient  Greece.  Our  next  evening's 
amusement  will  be  an  excursion  to  that  delightful 
region  ;  and  if  we  are  not  successful  in  gathering 
a  cluster  of  flowers  where  they  first  bloomed,  on 
the  borders  of  the  Pierian  fountain,  and  where 
the  Muses  themselves  once  delighted  to  rove,  we 
hope,  at  least,  to  b^  able  to  tell  you  whe.re  they 
may  be  found. 


130 


LECTURE  VI. 


Ancient  Greece, 

From  the  survey  of  Egjpt,  Assyria,  and  Per- 
sia, we  turn  to  the  Greeks,  to  whom  the  nations 
of  the  ear'h  are  indel*ted  for  the  productions  of 
refined  taste,  exalted  genius,  and  elegant  litera- 
ture. The  nations  beyond  the  Greeks  present  a 
clouded  prospect.  It  is  like  viewing  a  landscape 
by  the  light  of  the  moon,  whose  pale  lustre  often 
yields  to  a  passing  shadow,  and  never  penetrates 
the  deep  valleys  nor  retired  dells.  The  light  of 
Grecian  history  brightens  into  sunshine  ;  would 
that  it  presented  nothing  but  scenes  of  which  the 
day  were  not  ashamed  ! 

As  the  Grecian  history  is  designed  to  occupy 
three  successive  lectures,  I  propose  this  evening 
to  set  'before  you  some  remarks  on  the  genius ^ 
literature,  ciiid  arts,  of  that  astonishing  people, 
who  claim  an  ascendency  over  all  nations  : — and, 
considering  what  they  invented,  improved,  and 
perfected,  may  cheerfully  be  allowed  the  palm. 
For  surely,  after  practising  upon  their  models  for 
twenty-five  centuries,  if  all  the  world  is  still 
behind  them  in  sculpture,  architecture,  poetry, 
and  eloquence,  they  must  be  allowed  to  be  the 
masters  of  mankind. 

The  few  incidents  of  their  civil  history,  and 
great  revolutions,  which  we  shall  be  able  to  con- 
dense intoa  lecture,  will  derive  advantage'and  im- 
pression from  an  account  of  the  nature  and  origin 


GREECE.  131 

G»r  that   exalted  genius   which   eiiaoled  them    to 
conquer,  to  govern,  and  to  instruct. 

Genius  consists  in  quickness  and  perspicuity 
of  apprehension,  coinprebensiveness  and  strength 
of  intelligence,  and  decision  and  celerity  of 
conduct.  Genius,  says  Zimmerman,  is  that  power  ■ 
of  mind  by  which  we  seize  an  object  in  all  its 
bearings  and  relations  at  one  view.  But  without 
labouring  after  definitions,  the  man  of  genius  is 
one  who  possesses  the  various  powers  and 
faculties  possessed  by  men  in  general,  but  to  an 
uncommon  degree.  It  facilitates  the  operations 
of  reason,  or  rather  substitutes  intuition  in  its 
stead.  It  countervails  the  want  of  experience, 
and  prevents  the  painful  labours,  tedious  delays, 
and  dangerous  errors,  necessary  to  obtain  it.  Of 
course,  "  it  begins  where  experience  ends." 

The  Greeks  probably  possessed  more  genius 
than  any  other  nation  ;  and  to  this  was  owing 
their  astonishing  discoveries  and  progress  in  the 
arts  of  peace  r.nd  war.  To  this  it  was  owing 
that  you  see  in  Philip  of  Macedon  the  first 
rudin.ients  of  diplomatic  science  ;  in  Pyrrhus 
the  tirst  form  of  a  regular  encampment  ;  in 
Pythagoras  the  first  notions  of  the  true  system  of 
the  universe  ;  in  the  amphyctionic  council  the 
first  principles  of  a  confederated  republic  ;  and  in 
all  the  states  of  Greece,  the  true  origin  of  civil 
liberty.  This  enabled  Homer  to  give  the  world, 
tiot  only  the  first,  but  the  most  finished  and  per- 
fect epic  poem  ever  formed  ;  and  Domesthenes 
to  pronounce,  if  not  the  most  copious,  elegant,  and 
pleasing,  yet  the  most  pointed,  impressive,  and 
forcible  orations  ever  delivered. 

No  subject  is  more  complicated  than  the  de- 
velopment of  the  character  of  a  nation,  and  of 
the  causes   of    their    prosperity     and   decliHe, 


132  ANCIENT  HISTORV. 

Many  things  are  to  be  viewed  in  the  tivofold 
light  of  cause  and  effect ;  many  causes  have  an 
influence  through  unseen  channels,  and  with  in- 
visible and  silent  energy,  produce  distant  snd 
dissimilar  effects ;  and  on  what  small  pivots  the 
greatest  events  often  turn  cannot  have  escaped 
the  notice  of  any  well-informed  and  coatempla- 
tive  mind.  I'  /^  ! 

Liberty  first  chose,  and  has  ever  choVeh,  h^r 
favourite  residence  on  hills  and  mountains.  It 
cannot  be  doubted  that  the  climate  and  face  of 
the  country  in  Greece  had  a  powerful  influence 
on  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  that  romantic 
country.  The  passions  of  the  mind  are  like 
storms  at  sea  :  when  they  raise  a  whirlwind  on 
an  extensive  plain,  it  will  travel  till  it  finds  a 
barrier.  Tyrants  and  conquerors  have  always 
succeeded  on  the  great  plains  of  Asia.  But  the 
steely  spirits  of  the  Alps  fostered  the  fire  of 
liberty,  til!  a  tyrant  arose,  who,  on  plains,  has 
the  stride  of  a  giant,  and  on  rocks  and  mountains 
the  flexibility  of  a  serpent. 

The  Grecian  Peloponnesus  is  a  beautiful 
peninsula,  uniting  every  advantage  of  a  continent 
and  island.  The  Archipelago,  lying  round  it, 
is  sprinkled  with  pleasant  islands,  rising,  like 
emeralds,  on  the  heaving  bosom  of  the  deep.  On 
the  eastern  shore  of  this  narrow  sea  the  lesser 
Asia  presents  some  of  the  most  agreeable  coun- 
^tries  in  the  world  ;  where  Troy  once  flourished^ 
where  Crccsus,  king  of  Lydia,  displayed  his 
magnificence,  and  where  the  faithful  Artimesia 
reared  a  mausoleum  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of 
her  affection. 

The  Peloponnesus  was  approached  hy  land 
over  the  isthmus  of  Corinth,  on  which  a  city  of 
tjaat  ostfiie  flourished  foi   ages,  till  it  was  over» 


GRfeECE.  133 

turned  by  the  power  of  Rome.  Without  this 
isthmus  stood  Athens,  one  of  the  finest  cities  in 
the  world,  the  ancient  seminary  of  nations,  the 
eentre  of  arts  and  sciences,  the  mistress  of  taste 
and  elegance. 

Some  of  the  boldest  lines  and  finest  touches  of 
nature's  pencil  were  in  ancient  Greece.  I  say 
ancient  Greece,  for  if  it  were  possible  for  a  stupid 
barbarous  nation  to  deform  the  face  of  nature, 
to  spoil  and  undo  what  Almighty  Providence  has 
done,  the  Turks  would  have  transformed  this 
feeautiful  region.  Indeed,  if  one  could  have  seen 
that  country,  as  it  was  in  the  days  of  Agamemnon 
and  Clytemnestra,  or  on  the  morning  of  that  day 
when  Miltiades  drew  out  his  little  band  of  heroes 
to  the  battle  of  Marathon,  I  fancy  he  would 
scarcely  know  it  by  its  present  appearance. 

Its  mountains  are  bold  and  lofty  ;  they  rear  their 
summits  as  if  to  inspect  the  transactions  of  the 
clouds,  or  contend  with  (he  spirits  of  the  storm. 
The  verdure  of  the  hills  is  uncommonly  bright, 
and  their  variegated  attitudes,  and  peculiar  forms, 
display  magnificence  and  beauty.  Their  sloping 
rales,  like  the  verdant  avenues  of  a.  vast  garden, 
wind  through  colonnades  of  hills  and  mountains, 
where  an  endless  variety  of  prospect  invites  the 
eye  to  rove  with  wonder,  or  rest  with  pleasure. 
"i  he  landscape  is  completed  by  springs,  and  brooks, 
and  rivers,  which  pursue  their  frolick  course,  and 
dash  like  liquid  silver  from  the  hills,  and  along 
the  plains  and  vales,  presenting  their  crystal  bosom 
as  a  mirror  to  the  ardours  of  the  sun,  or,  in  the 
tranquillity  of  night,  reflect  the  spangled  robes  of 
heaven. 

The    unrivalled    scenery  of    ancient    Greece 
sfiemed   to   declare  it  the  land  of  poetry  and  ro- 
?Jiance,  the  lan^  ef  freedom^  patriots,  and  ker«e*,» 
12 


i34  A:^icIENT  history. 

While, it  affected  the  imagination  with  bold  im- 
ages, and  inspired  grand  sentiments  and  sublime 
tbou^hts,  its  pure  air  and  wholesome  streams  gave 
high  heaith  and  iiorid  vigour.  Its  fruili'ul  soil  and 
temperate  seasons  rendered  subsistence  easy,  and 
life  long  and  secure.  In  these  advantages,  which, 
in  the  aggregate,  exceeded  those  of  any  other  coun- 
try, \vc  may  see  some  of  the  causes  of  the  supe- 
rior genius  of  the  Greeks. 

This  surprising  people  possessed  another  ad- 
vantage over  all  nations  ;  but  whether  this  was 
a  cause  or  an  effect  of  their  genius  and  mental 
powers  may  be  thought  a  question  involving 
doubt.  The  Greek  language,  whether  we  take 
our  opinion  of  it  from  the  Vvriters  of  the  Augustan 
age,  or  from  tlie  unequalled  fabric  come  down  to 
owr  times,  was  the  most  noble,  the  mo^t  perfect, 
the  mostexqui'^ite  ever  formed.  The  Koman  lan- 
guage was  a  majestic  and  highly  finished  lan- 
guage. But  let  an  ear  which  can  judge  of  mu- 
sic hear  a  passage  of  Homer  well  read,  and  im- 
mediately after  a  passage  of  Virgil,  and  he  will 
say  that  Homer  is  the  softest,  the  sweetest,  the 
grandest,  and,  in  all  respects,  the  best. 

The  Grecian  language,  in  oratory  w  as  bold,  so- 
norous, and  commanding  ;  in  poetry  it  was  incom- 
parably versatile,  flexible,  powerful,  and  harmo- 
nious ;  in  history  it  w^as  grave,  chaste,  and  dignifi- 
ed ;  in  fable,  allegory,  metaphor,  and  epigram, 
it  was  pointed,  condensed,  full  of  thought.  In 
the  strains  of  Sappho  you  hear  the  voice  of  pas- 
sion— the  heart  is  touched  by  the  lamentations 
of  hopeless  despair.  In  Theocritus'  beautiful 
vision  of  ancient  landscape,  you  hear  the  groves 
sigh  for  Adonis:  you  see  his  wounds  bleeding, 
while  the  lovely  sisters  of  the  bow  mourn  his  un- 
timely fall,  aaUjWith  unutterable  grief,  turn  from 


GREECE.  iS5 

fhe  Fcene,  and,  by   a  resistless   charm,  you  join 
the- procession,  and  become  one  of  the   mourners* 

But  when  the  thunder  of  the  warlike  muse 
po-ars  in  the  voice  of  [lomer  ;  when  you  hear 
the  Clang  of  Apollo's  bov/,  and  see  the  glittering 
arrow  mark  its  path  u'ith  li.^ht,  you  treinl)Ie  for 
the  victim,  and,  hurried  by  the  poet  across  the  vale 
of  3,0U0  years,  you  stand  an  astonished  spectator 
of  the  scene. 

iA  tsnguage  of  such  powers,  of  such  resistless 
fascinations,  must,  as  already  noticed,  have  been 
the  cause  and  the  effect  of  Grecian  genius.  It 
was  the  cause,  for  it  could  render  soul  visible  to 
souL  The  energy  of  such  inj-piring  sounds  was 
every  moment  felt — and  felt  by  all  classes  of  peo- 
ple ;  and  Crassus,  the  orator,  [Tully  de  Oratore,] 
somewhere  remarks,  that  the  mechanics  of  Athens 
were  niol'e  eloquent  than  the  orators  of  other  na- 
tions. Such  a  mean  of  conversation  prompted 
the  Greeks  to  every  thin^  great  and  noble. 

The  perfection  of  this  language  was  also  the 
eSect  of  Grecian  genius.  For  unless  we  under- 
take to  believe  that  it  was  inspired,  and  taught 
immediately  from  heaven,  we  must  suppose  it  was 
wrought  up  by  degrees,  to  its  utmost  sti-ength 
and  elegance,  by  long  and  persevering  efforts. 

The  Grecian  genius  derived  its  force  and  gran- 
deur from  another  source  no  less  conspicuous — 
their  forms  of  government.  The  first,  and,  per- 
haps, the  most  natural,  of  all  governments,  is  de- 
spotic monarchy.  Nations. generally  begin  and 
end  with  this.  In  the  first  formation  of  the  Gre- 
cian states,  they  were  governed  by  tyrants,  as 
they  were  then  called,  which  word  signified 
much  the  same  as  king  or  monarch.  It  is  some- 
what remarkable,  that  about  the  time  Saul  was 
elevated  to  the  throne  in  Israel,  the  Grecian  states 


13ft  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

abolished  monarchy,  and  established  a  republican 
form  of  government.  I  cannot  but  consider  this 
revolution  as  owing,  in  a  good  measure,  to  the 
bold  and  variegated  features  of  their  country,  so 
highly  favourable  to  intellectual  vigour  and  €«« 
pansion.  '-'' 

But  long  before  this  revolution,  the  Greeks  had 
given  a  proof  of  their  political  veisdom,  in  form- 
ing a  federal  government.  At  the  city  of  Ther- 
mopylee,  a  place  afterwards  rendered  famous  by 
the  bravery  of  Leonidas,  in  resisting  the  army  of 
Xerxes,  the  Grecian  states  assembled,  by  two  re- 
presentatives from  each  state.  This  confedera- 
tion was  begun  some  time  before  the  Trojan  war, 
and  at  length  embraced  all  the  Grecian  states, 
both  within  and  without  the  Peloponnesus.  Their 
meeting  was  held  twice  a  year,  and  was  called 
the  Amphictyonic  council,  from  Amphictyon,  the 
king  of  Athens,  who  was  on  the  throne  when  the 
confederation  was  formed.  It  continued  till  abo- 
lished by  Alexander  the  Great,  and  was  a  princi- 
pal source  of  the  power  and  elevation  of  the  states 
of  Greece. 

The  general  fabric  of  the  Grecian  government 
was  more  like  our  own  than  that  of  any  other  na- 
tion. The  power  of  the  Amphictyonic  council 
was  more  limited,  and  less  legislative,  than  that  of 
our  congress  ;  and  the  Grecian  states  were  less 
consolidated  than  ours.  But  the  Amphictyonic 
council,  at  times,  exercised  legislative,  execu- 
tive, and  judicial  powers.  It  is  a  trait  of  all  the 
ancient  governments,  that  they  kept  the  several 
departments  of  government  less  separated  and  dis- 
tinct than  the  moderns. 

'  Every  American  should  read  the  history  of 
Greece.  There  he  will  see  what  small  states  are 
lo  expect  when  confederated  with    large  ones. 


There,  be  will  see,  lirst,  LacedeiJioa,next  Athens, 
then  Thebes,  ana  at  last  Corinth,  directing  the 
'general  councils  of  that  nation.  If  we  resemble 
the  Grecian  states  in  their  good,  as  well  as  bad 
traits,  it  will  be  well  for  us.  If  we  especially 
resemble  them  in  a  duration^  under  one  form  of 
governmeut  for  800  years,  and  become  the  greatest 
power  on  earth,  it  will  be  happy. 

The  freedom  of  the  Greeks  was,  no  doubt,  a 
source  whence  the  elevation  of  their  sentiments 
flowed  '.  it  was  the  fountain  of  their  genius. 

There  was  a  peculiar  felicity  in  many  of  their 
public  institutions,  to  promote  great  and  noble 
sentiments.  Among  the  foremost  of  these,  may 
be  reckoned  their  games  :  and  of  these,  the  Olym- 
pic were  the  most  celebrated.  Nothing  could 
exceed  their  magnificence  ;  nothing  could  equal 
the  ambition  which  prevailed,  to  come  off  a  con- 
queror in  these  splendid  competitions.  They 
were  designed  as  a  display  of  strength,  activity, 
skill,  and  courage.  The  man  who  was  a  con- 
queror here,  ever  after  had  the  right  to  a  place 
hy  the  side  of  his  prince,  or  commander,  in  the 
fieid  of  battle, 

Iphitus,  prince  of  Elis,  aided  by  Lycurgus,  the 
Spartan  legislator,  was  the  second  founder,  or  re- 
storer of  these  games.  A  beautiful  plain  near 
Olympia,  in  the  Peloponnesus,  was  chosen  for 
this  grand  exhibition.  Here  a  superb  gymna- 
sium was  erected,  and  all  the  plain  was  adorned 
with  gardens,  porticos,  columns,  arches  and  pa- 
laces. Every  fifth  year  this  splendid  scene  re- 
turned, and  as  it  drew  nigh,  a  more  brilliant  as- 
sembly convened  than  was  perhaps  ever  seen  oa 
any  stated  occasion.  The  sovereign  princes  of 
all  the  adjacent  countries  came,  attended  by 
tKeijT  courtiers  and  nobility.  Ladies,  withoul: 
12'^ 


J  38  AxVCIENT    HISTORY. 

whom  no  assembly  can  be  august  or  truly  splen- 
lild,  honoured  this  scene  of  beauty  and  magnifi- 
cence. From  their  presence,  ijideed,  its.' chief 
interest  arose.  *;.  '«  '  •  ^     m^    Jj- 

The  foot  and  chariot  races,  wrestling,  hoxxng^ 
throwing  the  coit,  and  what  they  called  the  pan- 
cratium, which  united  boxing  and  wrestling, 
Were  the  principal  exercises  of  the  competitors. 
Their  object  was  fame  and  glory.  The  sordid 
motive  of  making  money  was  the  last  that  could 
liave  been  thought  of  on  those  occasions.  But 
whilst  strength,  agility,  and  bravery  were  the 
great  objects  to  be  promoted  and  honoured,  the 
intellectual  powers  were  not  forgotten.  At  these 
games  were  exhibited  every  competition  of  men- 
tal excellence.  Orations  were  delivered,  poems 
was  exhibited,  every  specimen  of  art  and  sci- 
ence, thought  worthy  of  an  occasion  so  grand, 
was  produced  and  inspected  by  solemn  forms  of 
audience  and  examination.  The  poets,  orators, 
philosophers,  and  wits,  were  never  absent  from 
these  games  :  the  painters,  statuaries,  architects, 
and,  in  short,  all  the  renowned  artists,  came  hither 
to  display  their  talents,  and  to  earn  the  recom- 
pense of  applause,  which,  if  deserved,  they  were 
siire  to  gain. 

These  games  opened  a  grand  court,  in  which 
p\\  excellence  v/as  impartially  tried  and  nobly  re- 
warded. Its  influence  in  expanding  the  mind 
and  ennobling  the  genius  of  the  Greeks,  cannot  be 
doubted.  I  recollect  with  what  pleasure  I  read 
of  a  youth,  whose  name  1  have  forgotten,  who 
iiad  been  contending  and  come  off  victor  in  the 
pancratium.  The  conflict  was  terrible,  and  pro  ■ 
tracted  to  a  surprizing  length.  His  antagonist  had 
great  strength,  and  was  evidently  superior  in 
every  thing  but  invincible  courage.     The  youth 


V/RSECE.  139 

was  alien  ioiloJ,  and  sojnetimes  was  supposed  ac- 
tually slain.  But  rising  from  every  fall,  he  re- 
iwwtd  the  strife,  and,  gathcrii>g  courage  from  de- 
leat,  and  resolution  from  despair,  at,  length  he 
prevailed,  contrary  to  every  one's  expectation. 
But  he  was,  covered  with  vvoimds,  and  dr<?nched 
iij  blood.  As  they  \y.e,re  leading  him  away,  one 
of  his  acquaintance  asked  him,  wiih  a  satyrical 
a  if,  what  he  had  got  by.  his  victory  ?  ''  /  ,now  have 
a'^rigkt,''  replied,  ije,  "  to  fight  by  the  side  of  mij 
prince.'''' 

..->  ;Piutarch  has  celebrated  the  almost  unparalleled 
geod  foiitune  of, Philip  of  Macedon,  who,  on  the 
same  day,  received  intelligence  that  hi§  army 
bad  won  a  victory,  his  wife  iiad  borne  him  a  son, 
and  that  he  bad  been  conqueror  in  the  Olympic 
chariot  race.  In  the  immortal  stanzas  of  Pindar, 
these  games  ar.e  celebrated,  and  their  influence 
on  the  genius  and  passions  set  forth  ;  .and,  with- 
out doubt,  Irliero,  king  of  Sicily,  owes  more  of 
his  fame  to  his  victories  in  these  games  than  to 
his  crown  and  sceptre,  and  probably  more  to  the 
penof  Pindar  than  to  eiiher. 

The  state  of  nations,  vviien  the  Grecian  repub- 
lics rose,  gave  them  an  original  cast  of  mind,  and 
added  a  new  ingredient  in  their  genius  and  cha- 
racter. Their  retrospect  of  the  world,  Jiud  the 
state  of  human  knowledge,  as  it, came  to  them, 
raised  them  to  a  new  and  more  exalted  level 
than  any  other  nation  had  assumed.  Cecrops 
and  Danaus  were  from  Egypt,  Cadmus  froin 
Phenicia,  ,  and  Pelops  from  the  Lesser  Asia. 
While  the  states,  bounded  by  these  great  and 
enterprising  chieftains,  were  slowly  rising  to  ma- 
turity and  strength,  three  great  empiies  melted 
ivway. 
,r  ^The  gloom  of  Egypt  grew  darker  ;  that  ancient 


Hd  ANCIENT    HISTORY, 

iTaiion  bowed  with  years  and  descended   to  tlis 
tqtwb.      'ii^e    raighty    pyramids    and    sepiiichral 
domes    toid    the  traveller  what  Egypt  once  was.- 
In   these    venerable  shades  ihe  Grecian   phiioso- 
phers  loved  to  wander  ;  nor  was  the  gloom  so  pal- 
pable but  thai  they  gathered  many   jewels,  au4\ 
n^^de  accej-sions  to  the  stores  of  knowledge._-,niiE 
...Tne  Assyrian  empire,  that  Jion  whose  ro^v^-k^, 
so   oiten  resounded    through  the  plains  of  ;Asia," 
also   became  silent  in   the  dust.     The  coiifusioa 
of  Babel  had  ceased.     Her  walls  and  towers  >tood 
in  awful  silence,  and  afforded,  in  many   parts,  a 
peaceful  covert  to  wild  beasts  and  solitary  birds. 
The  Persian  empire  still  remained  ;  but  as  Greece 
rose  to  maturity,  she  tottered  to  her  fall. 

Greece  had  both  the  wing  and  the  eye  of  the 
eagle.  With  such  a  mass  of  antiquity  and  decajf' 
t)n  the  one  hand,  she  saw  new  and  powerlul  iii^: 
stitutions  rising  on  the  other.  Carthage,  on  ths; 
base  of  the  African  pyramid,  she  saw  monopo^.. 
lizing  the  sea,  and  in  Italy  there  lay  an  infant 
whose  very  cries  might  hush  the  roar  of  the  iion, 
and  whose  first  struggles  renewed  tJ^e  rememj', 
trance  of  Hercules  in  his  cradle.  Her  sages  trai^ 
veiled  far  in  quest  of  kn^^xfecl^^BBiiMyri^.^^^ 
iri  pursuit  of  fame.  .-/..     .,    ,_\^  .  „;c«,J  •^  ,:^ 

.With  these  adventitious  advantages  to  improve, 
expand,  and  polish  the  Grecian  genius,  '1  ret 
mark,  in  the  last  place,  there  must  have  been  aa 
original  and  distinctive  difference  and  superiuritj 
in  her  favour-  How  often  is  this  exempliiied  in 
brothers  of  the  same  family.  The  Egyptians 
and  Assyrians  are  allowed  to  have  been  the  de- 
scendants of  Ham  ;  the  Medes  and  Persian-  of 
Shem,  and  the  Greeks  and  Romans  of  Japliet, 
Let  not  the  sceptic  smile  , at  thi^  re.maiJi*  5>\l'.?AiJ^ 
say-pthat  I  see  in  t|}?  ■,ini:^ani;fi,;^0'^^  S^j^^' 


GREECE.  141 

striking  fulfilment  of  one  of  the  most  ancient  of 
all  predictions.  Noah  said,  in  his  last  blessing 
pronounced  upon  his  sons,  *'  God  shall  enlarge 
Japhet,  and  he  shall  dwell  in  the  tents  of  Shem, 
and  Canaan  shall  be  his  servant.**  This  enlarge- 
ment may  first  be  considered  as  enlargement  of 
mind-^a  more  liberal  endowment  of  intellectual 
powers.  This  early  blessing  took  efiect  in  those 
amazing  powers  of  mind  which  mark  the  Grecian 
character :  it  took  effect  when  the  Greeks  con- 
quered Persia  and  India — and  fully,  when  the 
Romans  subdued  Asia  and  Africa. 

The  Grecian  genius  was  vigorous,  elastic,  and 
sprightly.  The  Greeks  were  a  people  of  more 
gayety,  vivacity,  and  sprightlines,  than,  perhaps, 
any  of  the  ancient  nations  of  note  in  history. 
The  Egyptians  had  much  gravity  and  solemnity 
in  their  deportment ;  the  Chaldeans,  also,  as  far 
as  we  can  discover,  were  proud,  stately,  and 
distant ;  the  Persians  seemed  to  possess  more  ur- 
banity ;  but  their  whole  deportment  and  inter- 
course was  a  system  of  ceremony.  The  Greeks 
were  lively  and  volatile,  facetious  and  inquisitive  ; 
but  they  were  fierce  in  their  resentments,  and 
cruel  and  bloody  in  their  revenge. 

Such  being  the  genius  and  character  of  this  fa- 
mous people,  we  are  prepared  to  enter  upon  the 
consideration  of  their  learning  and  arts. 

The  history  of  the  sciences  is  like  a  great  river 
whose  volume  of  water  is  the  aggregate  tribute  of 
10,000  springs.  As  well  might  you  trace  out  all 
the  fountains  that  replenish  the  Amazon  as  all 
those  individuals  who  have  contributed  to  bring 
the  sciences  to  their  present  state.  But  many  of 
the  springs  of  science  have  flowed  down  from  the 
bills  of  ancient  Greece — many  may  be  traced 
fe2£k  to  the  banks  of  the  Nile. 


142  a:i:cjent   histoiiy. 

Of  poets,  the  Greeks  claim  the  first  and  tlie 
greatest.  It  is,  however,  hiif;h!y  probable  that 
there  were  poets  of  eiuinenl  talents  ajid  distin* 
gui:-l;!'d  excelience  before  the  days  of  iionjer, 
Foelrj  is  an  art  which  must  have  arrived  at  per- 
fection by  repeated  efforts,  a,iid  progi'essiye  step3. 
As  well  mi^h|;  we  suppose  that  Ossian  was  the 
lirst  cf  ail  the  Scottish  baids,  because  we  know 
of  none  before  him,  as  tiiat  Homer  was  the  tirsl 
of  poets.  Me  had  his  rivals,  his  patterns,  and  his 
contemporaries  ;  but  if  we  except  Hesiod,  thej 
are  lost  in  oblivion.  I  confess^  i  would  rather 
have  the  reputation  and  powers  of  the  man  who 
wrote  the  Paradise  Lost  than  of  the  man  who 
wrote  the  [liad  ;  yet  no  man  will  presunse  to  say  • 
that  any  nation  hasescelled  the  Greeks  in  tlie  art 
of  poetry.  If  their  epic  poet  has  ever  had  a  rival, 
their  pastoral  has  not.  Who  ever  shall  rc;id  the 
Idyls  of  Theocritus  will  close  the  book  and  say, 
as  was  said  by  David,  the  French  painter,  and 
with  much  more  truth,  th'i.<i  inan.  has  no  rival.  . 

I'he  Greeks  were  the  first  of  the  ancient  na" 
ticns  that  excelled  in  oratory.  Rome  did,  indeed, 
dispute  with  them  the  palm  of  eloquence,  and  we 
cannot  here  erect  a  tribunal  to  try  this  digniiied 
cause.  Our  decision  must  be  summary.  I  be- 
lieve few  men  vvliohave.  read  the  orations  of  Ci- 
cero and  Demosthenes  would  not  choose  to  be 
the  Roman  ;  yet  that  choice  may  be  guided  by 
other  motives  than  those  of  eloquence.  The 
halo  which  beamed  round  the  Kopjan  oralor  was 
more  broad  aud  luHtinous.  The  urbanity,  the 
lustre,  the  glory  of;  the  man  relieved  his  eloquence 
on  a  ground  like  the  azure  of  heaven  on  which  a 
star  twinkles.  The  ei.oquence  of  the  Keman  was 
rich,  that  of  the  Gie^ij  was  stroDs;. 

In  sculpture  and  statuary,  the  Greeks  were  ne- 


GREECE.  143 

ver  equailed.  To  the  name  of  Phidias  the  artists 
of  a]J  nations  paj  homage.  Who,  to  see  the  rough 
and  senseless  marble  drawn  from  the  quarry  co-aid 
imagiiie  to  what  beauty,  elegance,  grace  and  per- 
fection it  might  be  wrought  ?  what  elevation  of 
sentiment,  what  strength  of  expression,  what 
variety  of  passion  ?  No  art  is  more  a  test  of 
genius  than  that  of  the  statuary.  it  seems 
almost  to  approach  creative  powers:  it  tran- 
scends the  powers  of  tongues,  or  pens,  or  pen- 
cils. Such  was  the  celebrated  groupe  of  Ni- 
ebe,  one  of  tiie  finest  pieces  of  Grecian  statuary. 
While  ber  lovely  children  are  pierced  by  the 
avengiiig  arrows  of  Apollo,  the  noble  matron,  over- 
whelmed with  astonishment,  and  motionless  in  si- 
leni  grief,  is  petrified,  and  turns  to  marble  ;  yet, still 
writhing  in  all  the  agony  which  no  words  can 
paint,  her  eyes  turned  towards  heaven,  at  her 
feet  her  children  lie  dead,  while  the  angry  deity 
with  a  frown  has  drawn  his  bow,  and  is  ready  to 
send  another  death t"ul  shaft. 

The  world  has  never  seen  any  thing  of  the  kind 
equal  to  the  Grecian  architecture  They  found 
the  proportions  which  constitute  simplicity,  gran- 
deur, and  beauty.  Were  there  no  deeper  causes 
to  lament  and  detest  the  ambition  of  conquerors, 
suilicieut  cause  might  be  seen  in  the  waste  and 
desolation  of  the  noblest  monuments  of  ancient 
genius  and  taste  An  anecdote  of  Mummius,  the 
Roman  consul,  who  destroyed  Corinth,  the  second 
of  the  Grecian  cities,  will  show  how  little  the 
value  of  the  aits  was  understood.  After  barba- 
rou-ly  tearing  down,  burning  and  destroying  some 
of  the  finest  edilices  ever  buiit,  he  collected  to- 
geiner  some  pictures  and  statues  of  most  exquisite 
workman>iii|',  and  sent  j.hem  off  towards  Kome. 
Bat  he  told-  tliose  who  had  the  care  of  them  to  be 


144  ANCIEJJT  HISTOIIV. 

cautious  and  not  lose  tbera  ;  for  if  they  did,  they 
should  be  at  the  expense  of  getting  new  ones  made. 
Little  did  this  barbarous  tyrant  consider  that  the 
like  of  those  inimitable  productions  of  art  would 
never  be  made.  - 

The  Greeks  claim  as  well  the  father  of  histori- 
ans as  of  poets.  For  although  they  do  not  claioat 
history  as  their  invention,  yet,  if  we  except  the 
sacred  writings,  and  a  few  others,  of  doubtful 
character,  history  began  with  them.  So  perfect 
was  the  history  of  Herodotus,  that  when  he  read 
before  the  Athenian  assembly  that  splended  pro- 
duction, they  called  his  nine  books  after  the  nine 
Muses.  Xenophon,  who,  as  a  commander,  per^ 
formed  ©ne  of  the  greatest  achievements  recorded 
in  history,  (I  refer  to  the  retreat  of  the  10,000j. 
mentioned  in  the  last  lecture,)  produced  a  piece  of 
feistorical  narrative  perhaps  never  excelled. 

Their  mathematical  powers  and  acquisitions 
were  above  all  eulogium,  Euclid's  elements  of 
geometry,  one  of  the  noblest  piles  of  pure  science 
ever  erected,  still  instructs  the  schools  of  all  po- 
lite nations  in  the  principles  of  demonstration. 
To  that  the  literati  of  the  whole  world  resort  as 
to  the  storehouse  of  jiathematical  reasoning. 
Let  that  book,  and  all  that  has  been  drawn  from 
it,  be  struck  out  of  existence,  and  out  of  memory, 
and  the  mathematical  sciences  would  sink  in 
darkness :  it  would  be  like  drawing  the  iron, 
out  of  the  fabric  of  a  ship  or  house— of  which, 
the  immediate  consequence  would  be  its  disso- 
lution. 

The  foundations  were  laid  for  astronomy,  and 
most  of  the  branches  of  natural  philosophy,  by 
the  Greeks,  or  the  nations  that  went  before  them.  ^ 
And  the  Greeks,  if  they  did  not  invent  and  disco- ^ 
ver>  they  took  care  to  be  the  wiser  fpr  what  otfeer  i. 


GREECE.  345 

rtations  had  discovered  : — they  let  nothing  escape 
them  pniioticed ;  and  nothing  passed  through 
their  hands  unimproved.  They  knew  all  the 
astronomica]  circles  of  the  sphere  ;  bad  divided 
the  heavens  into  constellations,  and  were  able  to 
foretell  eclipses  of  the  sun  and  moon. 

They  bad  discovered  tlie  obliquity  of  the 
ecliptic,  and  ihe  variously  inclined  planes  of  the 
orbits  of  the  several  planets.  They  bad  not,  in- 
deed,  the  advantage  of  viewing  the  heavens 
through  the  powerful  telescopes  of  modern  times  ; 
of  course,  they  failed  of  many  discoveries  which 
without  glas.ses,  never  could  have  been  made. 
Kepler's  laws  of  the  planetary  motions,  and  New- 
ton's laws  of  gravitation,  together  with  the  use  of 
glasses,  constitute  the  principal  improvements  in 
modern  astronomy.  The  true  system  of  the  uni- 
verse was  understood  by  Thales  and  Pythagoras. 
Those  eminent  philosophers  bad  discovered  that 
the  sun  was  the  true  centre  of  the  system,  and 
that  the  earth,  with  the  other  planets,  revolved 
round  the  sun. 

The  moderns,  it  must  be  confessed,  have  ma% 
some  noble  additions  to  the  mathematical  sci- 
ences. Logarithms,  algebra,  and  fluxions,  in 
addition  to  the  facility  of  numerical  calculation, 
derived  from  the  Arabians  of  the  middle  ao-es, 
makes  our  arithmetic  far  superior  to  the  Grecian! 
B^ut  Euclid's  Elements  evinced  more  vigour  of 
faculties,  and  solidity  of  reason  than  all  the  ma- 
thematical productions  of  modern  times.  i  am 
in  doubt  whether  it  be  not  the  noblest  monument 
of  science  ever  raised  by  mortal  man. 

If,  as  some  say,  the  wisdom  of  a  nation  is  to  be 

looked  for  in  their  maxims,  proverbs,  and  fables, 

I  know  of  no  finer  field  thau  Grecian  literature 

presents  ia  these  respect j.      What  similar  pro- 

13 


14(3  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

ductioi)  ever  equalled  the  fables  of  Esop  ?  What 
uninspired  maxims  ever  surpassed  those  of  the 
sages  of  Greece  ?  Thej  discovered  a  deep  know- 
Jedge  of  human  nature  ;  they  saw  the  motives  of 
conduct  ;  few  principles  of  morality  and  ethics 
escaped  their  observation.  And  it  will  be  found 
that  such  writers  as  Erasmus,  Grotius,  Montes- 
quieu, Puffendorf,  and  Bacon,  those  luminaries  in 
the  revival  of  letters,  drew  from  this  a'ncieht'stOFe- 
house.  •  •,    :  . 

In  the  entire  and  comprehensive  science  of  hu- 
manity, I  am  in  douSt  whether  all  the  boasted 
polish  of  modern  tirr.es  has  added  a  shade  or  ray 
of  excellence,  except  what  is  immediately  ou'inij 
to  Christianity.  But  the  ancient  Greeks  banished 
their  best  and  greatest  men.  What  do  the  mo- 
derns ?  If  such  a  thing  as  an  honest  statesman 
appear  once  in  a  century,  he  is  bound  in  the 
chain  of  public  sentiment,  and  laid  quietly  in  the 
dungeon  of  oblivion  But  the  ancient  govern- 
ments were  cruel.  What  are  the  modern  ?  They 
hold  out  one  set  of  motives  to  the  people,  and  act 
from  another.  The  ancient  governments  had  more 
of  force  and  violence,  but  more  sincerity  :  the 
modern  art  of  government  consists  in  concealment. 

But  in  several  of  the  ancient  nations,  and  the 
Greeks  among  others,  there  was  a  nobleness  of 
character,  an  ingenuousness  of  sentiment,  which 
makes  it  appear  desirable  to  have  lived  among 
such  a  people :  they  abounded  in  that  disposi- 
tion termed  generosity.  But  to  discover  the  amia- 
ble traits  in  their  character,  it  must  be  caretully 
contemplated  with  some  other  ligiit  than  merely 
that  of  history.  It  lie-^  dispersed  through  their 
writings,  and  will  be  found  scattered  over  the 
broad  field  of  their  literature.  Hence  may  be 
deduced  the  importance  of  the  study  of  ancient 


147 


languages.  As  it  is  quite  itnpossiljle  to  form  an 
idea  of  a  countenance  by  mere  description,  so  to 
develop  the  character  of  a  nation,  is  beyond 
ilfie  power  and  province  of  history.  We  must 
know  their  thoughts,  their  sentiments,  their  modes 
of  con^versation. 

In  these  various  respects,  the  Greeks  possessed 
great  and  unrivalled  excellence-  With  a  genius 
expansive,  free  and  strong,  a  language  of  copious 
modulation  and  peculiar  harmony,  their  mental 
powers  were  attuned  to  magnanimous  designs  and 
generous  dispositions.  Alexander,  when  he  was 
retiring  from  an  intervievv  with  Diogenes,  power- 
fully affected  with  his  greatness  of  sou!,  exclaim- 
ed.to  his  attendants.  "  If  I  were  not  Alexander,  I 
■would  rather  be  Diogenes." 

I'A  lively  and  strong  imagination  generally 
unites  with  great  sensibility  These  were  emi- 
nently characteristic  of  the  Grecian  people.  I 
|)ave  somewhere  read  a  curious  anecdote  of  an  old 
man,  who  was  a  stranger  at  Athens,  who  went 
one  evening  into  the  theatre.  As  he  approached 
the  seats  of  the  Athenian  youth,  they  pressed  to- 
gether in  such  a  manner  as  to  leave  him  no  place 
to  be  seated  ;  he  was,  therefore,  compelled  to 
stand  in  a  situation  very  conspicuous  and  embar- 
rassing, and  exposed  to  ridicule.  The  Lacede- 
monians, who  held  age  in  great  veneration,  per- 
ceiving his  confusion,  and  touched  with  pity,  by 
a  general  sympathy,  all  rose  at  once  to  offer  him 
a  seat.  Tlse  volatile  Athenians,  struck  w-ith  such 
urbanity,  suddenly  gave  a  thunder  of  applause. 
The  old  man  replied,  "  The  Athenians  know 
what  is  good — the  Lacedemonians  practise  it.*' 

No  nation  was  ever  more  susceptible  of  a  sub- 
lime and  generous  friendship.  This  noble  pas- 
fjion   of  the  mind  is   the  evidence  and  the  mea- 


148,  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

sure  nf  human  ha])piness.  The  want  of  it,  fills 
life  with  3>iisery,  in  f-vei  y  form  ?/■><}  degree.  Nei- 
ther wealth  nor  faiifii',  neither  pnisperity  nor  pow- 
er, without  it,  can  give  joy  to  the  heart.  Ex- 
ternal circumstances  are  adventitious  to  happi- 
ness— friendship  is  essential.  Other  intellectual 
and  mental  endowments  surround  the  human  cha- 
racter with  lustre, as  viewed  by  others  ;  this  lovely^, 
affection  is  the  soul  s  perpetual  sunshine  ;  it  is- 
that  which  makes  us  conscit)us  that  we  are  happj^f 
in  onrselves.  In  reading  the  characters  and  ac- 
tions of  this  magnanimous  nation,  the  glow  of  thi:^ 
sentiment  diffuses  over  all  a  vernal  warmth  and 
brightness.  Indeed,  something  of  this  air  prevails  ' 
in  all  the  ancient  nations  ;  and  I  have  been  ready 
to  inquire,  whether  the  human  race,  in  its  aggre- 
gate capacity,  does  not  resemble  an  individual  : 
whether,  as  it  grows  old,  and  removes  farther  dis- 
tant from  the  morning  of  time,  and  the  youth  of 
society,  it  does  not  resemble  an  old  man,  whom 
the  chill  of  lime  has  rendered  avaricious, 

**  And  froze  the  genial  current  ot"  the  soul  ;'* 

whom  misfortune  has  rendered  sour,  and  continual 
disappointment  distrustful  ? 

Whoever  shall  read  Cicero's  charming  Essay 
on  Friendship,  will  not  be  able  to  avoid  the  be- 
lief, that  bis  mind  had  been  nurtured  in  a  fairer 
climate — a  mental  horizon  of  brighter  luminaries, 
whose  mild  influence  called  forth  flowers  of  richer 
fragrance  gand  beauty.  There  we  see  such  men 
as  the  immortal  Scipio,  and  Sca?vola — men  of  the 
first  eminence  the  world  ever  produced — men, 
equally  great  as  statesmen,  as  philosophers,  as 
commanders.  When  a  moment  of  leisure  allowed 
Ihem  respite  from  the  arduous  callings,  devoting 


GREECE,  14C| 

ihemseives  to  llie  pure  and  elevated  pleasures  of 
friendship,  which  they  cherished  wiih  the  inno- 
cence and  simplicity  of  childhood,  enjoyed  with 
the  raptures  of  youth,  and  adorned  with  the  ma- 
jesty of  unaffected  greatness. 

Nor  did  any  ancient  nation  excel  the  Greeks 
in  this  generous  vein  of  sentiment.     They  seemed 
to  live   for  the   interest   and  happiness   of  their 
friends.     Solon's  rule  for  measuring  human  hap- 
piness, proposed  to  Crcesus,  king  of  Lydia,  was,-' 
''  to  live  in  love,  and  die  in  peace. '^     And  he  told 
the  haughty  monarch  that  Cleobis  and  Biton,  two 
obscure  young  men, who  spent  their  time  in  per--- 
forming  their  duty  to  their  country  and  the  godsj'^ 
in  acts  of  kindness  to  their  friends,  and  of  filial  '^ 
piety  to  their  mother,  were  happy  men.  >S 

With    the    Greeks,    personal    attachment    had-B 
more    influence,  and    private  interest  less,   than'^ 
with  almost  any  other  nation.      Xerxes  the  Great-^ 
was  much  surprised   when  a  Greek,  who  was  ad^- 
mitted  to  his  confidence,  told  him  that  the  Greeks 
did  not  fight  for  money.      "  And  pray,^'  said  he, 
*'  what  thenilo  they  fight  for?"     "  They  fight," 
said  the  other,  "  for  glory."    The  brave  men  who 
fought  and  fell  with  Leonidas,  at  the  Straits   off 
Thermopylffi,  were  led  by  love  to  their  country,  ' 
to  their  leader,  and  to  one  another,  and  by  the 
love  ot  glory. 

The  Greeks  gave  an  honourable  evidence  of  '^ 
love  to  their  country,  by  resigning  their  lives  for  -'' 
its  welfare  ;  and,  perhaps,  they  did  this  in  a  man-  '! 
ner  more  unequivocal,  and  more  frequently,  thart"^^ 
any  other  nation.  Every  reader  has  heard  the'i 
story  x)f  Codrus,  king  of  Athens.  An  oracle  had'^-^ 
foretold,  that  a  nation,  whose  king  should  fall  itf^ 
battle,  should  be  victorious.  '1  he  Athenians-;^' 
were  then  engaged  in  a  dangerous  war  with  tW"' 
13* 


J5Q  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

Heraclidae,  But  as  the  Heraclidae  had  heard  the 
same  oracle,  they  determined  not  to  kill  the  king 
of  Athens,  and  to  use  the  greatest  care  to  preserve 
his  life.  For  this  a  special  order  was  given.  The 
patriot  king,  perceiving  how  diificult  it  would  be 
for  him  to  be  slain  in  the  common  course  of  events, 
dressed  himself  in  disguise,  and  going  out  to  the 
enemy's  array,  he  drew  a  dagger  and  wounded  a 
soldier.  At  this  they  fell  upon  him  and  killed  him, 
not  knowing  who  he  was.  According  to  the  oracle, 
the  Athenians  were  victorious  ;  and  as  a  testimo- 
ny of  their  gratitude  to  Codrus,  whom  they  ho- 
noured as  the  saviour  of  his  country,  they  passed 
a  law  that  no  man  should  ever  more  reign  in 
Athens,  under  the  title  of  king.  They  gave  the 
administration,  therefore,  to  arehons,or  chief  ma- 
gistrates. 

But  this  sentimental,  magnanimous  people,  had 
an  ardour  of  character,  a  warmth  of  attachment 
to  their  friends,  of  which  we  seem  able  to  form  no 
conception  :  and  whenever  we  read  to  what  sub- 
limity of  soul  it  often  carried  them,  we  are  com- 
pelled to  confess  we  are  strangers  to  such  feelings  ; 
and  we  cannot  but  think  meanly  of  that  cold  me- 
diocrity, or  lukewarm  indifference,  which  charac- 
terizes the  society  and  the  age  in  which  we  live. 
When  the  scenes  of  real  life  have  once  dispelled 
the  fleeting  illusions  of  youth,  where  is  a  man's 
friends  ?  Some,  perhaps,  are  dead  ;  they  were 
snatched  away  before  the  blossom  of  profession 
could  ripen  into  fruit,  or  be  blasted  by  interest  : 
others,  launched  into  divergent  pursuits,  look  back 
after  him,  at  times,  with  vacant  gaze,  as  we  be- 
hold a  distant  sail  at  sea  lying  on  a  different 
course,  and  are  ready  to  despise  his  failure,  or 
envy  his  success.  If  he  is  rich,  he  may  thank  his 
Wealth  for  presenting  society  in  a  mask,  behind 


GREECE.  151 

which  it  is  impossible  for  him,  at  once,  to  distin* 
guish  the  basilisk  from  the  dove. 

;*{|T"  And'Wliat  is  friendship  but  a  name, 
■'    A  charm  thiit  lulls  to  sleep, 

A  shade  that  follows  wealth  and  fame, 
Jl^ut  .leaves  the  Avrelch  to  weep?" 

.s,  bshivjo 

.  >If  $  man  is  rich,  a  large  class  court  his  favour, 
iri  hopes  of  deriving  benefit  from  his  influence; 
another  class  come  near  him,  in  hopes  of  attracting 
a  particle  of  gold  from  the  contact  ;  many  tharp 
«yes  and  nimble  fingers  watch  him  for  some 
advantage  of  his  good  nature,  negligence,  igno- 
rance, or  generosity,  actuated  by  as  noble  a 
motive  as  the  vulture  which  approaches  a  carcass. 
Alexander  the  Great,  than  whom  few  men  pos- 
sessed more  penetration,  said,  very  shrewdly, 
concerning  two  of  his  most  intimate  friends, 
"  Craterus  loves  the  king,  Hepheesiion  loves 
Alexander."  And  when  Charles  the  Fifth  had 
laid  aside  his  crown  and  sceptre,  and  become  a 
private  man,  his  greatest  grief  and  mortification 
was  to  perceive  how  suddenly  an  immense  crowd 
of  friends,  admirers,  and  flatterers,  vanished : 
that  whilst  as  a  monarch  he  had  thousands  to 
adore  him,  as  a  man  he  bad  not  a  friend  to  par- 
ticipate his  pleasures,  to  soothe  his  sorrows,  or 
to  close  his  eyes. 

In  the  history  of  Syracuse  there  is  an  account 
of  two  young  Grecian  noblemen  who  lived  in 
the  reign  of  Dionysius  the  tyrant.  They  had 
for  a  long  time  cultivated  the  strictest  intimacy 
and  friendship,  and  pursued  a  conrse  <  f  life 
unimpeachable.  But  the  spirit  of  liberl;  I'leva- 
lent  among  the  Greeks,  had  on  various  occasions 
appeared ;  and  many  had    fallen  victims  to  the 


152  ANCIENT  HISTOftk*. 

suspicion  of  the  tyrant.  At  length,  one  of  tiie 
two  friends  was  seized  by  Dionysius,  and  was 
condemned  to  die.  But  as  he  had  business  abroad, 
of  consequence  to  his  family,  which  he  v/isbed 
to  settle  before  his  death,  he  applied  to  the  king 
for  permission  to  go,  and  his  friend  offered  him- 
self as  a  hostage,  to  reinaiii  in  prison  till  his 
return,"  or  to  die  in  his  stead  if  he  should  not 
return.  The  king  accepted  the  substitute,  and 
the  reputed  criminal  went  his  journey. 

When  the  time  appointed  for  the  execution  of 
the  sentence  drew  near,  the  criminal  had  not 
leturned  ;  and  every  body  now  began  to  believe 
that  he  had  made  his  escape,  and  left  his  friend 
involved  in  ruin.  The  one  detained  in  prison 
maintained,  however,  with  unshaken  confidence, 
that  bis  friend  would  return,  unless  prevented  by 
death,  or  unavoidable  necessity,  in  which  case 
he  should  submit  to  his  fate  without  repining. 

The  day  and  the  hour  arrived  :  no  criminal 
appeared.     An    immense    crowd    of  people, 


as- 


Syracuse,  and  from  all  parts  of  Sicily, 
sembled  to  see  the  result  of  so  strange  an 
event.  Dionysius  himself  expressed  great  un- 
easiness ;  but  as  he  suspected  it  had  been  a  plan 
contrived  to  screen  the  offender,  he  was  determin- 
ed to  inflict  the  sentence  on  the  hostage.  The 
sufferer  was  led  to  the  scaffold.  He  ascended 
with  undaunted  air  and  firm  step  ;  but,  lest  the 
honour  of  his  friend  should  be  tarnished,  he  re- 
quested as  much  delay  as  the  forms  of  proceedings 
in  such  cases,  would  admit.  What  vvas  the  as- 
tonishment of  the  whole  concourse  when  in  this 
critical  moment  the  cry  of  Damon,  Damon,  was 
henrd  from  an  extreme  part  of  the  assembly. 
He  approached  with  haste  a^d  terror  lest  he  had 
pome  too  lale,  and  impeded  by  the  greatness  o^ 


GREECE,  153 

the  crowd,  lie  drew  his  sword  and  forced  his  way 
through  the  throng,  till  he  rushed  into  the  arms  of 
his  friend.  But  here  a  scene  ensued  which 
might  baffle  the  pen  of  Shakspeare.  Nor  is  it 
possible  to  say  whether  the  sublimity  of  their 
friendship,  or  their  contempt  of  death,  excited 
the  greater  admiration.  If  the  king  was  amazed 
at  the  return  of  Damon,  he  was  more  amazed  to 
see  Pythias  still  resolutely  determined  to  die  in 
his  stead.  In  «hort,  the  contest  now  was  which 
should  die.  Each  one  saw  stronger  reasons  for 
wishing  his  friend  to  live  than  to  live  himself  j 
each  one  claimed  the  right  of  being  the  sacrifice. 

While  the  two  friends  were  engpged  in  this 
unparalleled  dispute,  the  tone  of  public  sympa- 
thy rose  to  perfect  phrenzy,  and  the  haughty 
monarch  feared  that  compassion  for  the  victim 
might  suddenly  change  into  fury,  and  hurl  him 
from  his  throne.  He  felt  that  a  tyrant's  power  is 
not  equal  to  the  power  of  virtue,  and  that  a  man. 
is  greater  than  a  monarch.  He  rose  from  his  seat,': 
and  embracing  the  two  friends,  with  tears  in  his 
eyes  pronounced  a  free  pardon,  bade  them  both 
live  for  each  other's  sake,  and  desired  they  woylql 
admit  him  as  the  third,  in  a  bond  of  union  so 
noble  and  so  sacred.  Such  was  the  friendship  of 
Pythias  and  Damon. 

Were  one  of  you  under  sentence  of  death, 
where  is  your  friend,  who  would  enter  your 
dungeon,  clothe  himself  in  your  chains,  and 
expose  himself  to  your  fate,  thatyou  might  go  on 
business  to  some  other  country  ?  Nay,  who,  on 
your  return,  would  dispute  your  claim'  to  the 
scaffold,  and  to  death ;  would  violently  tear  you 
from  the  execution,  and  die  in  your  place  ? 

There  beams  not  a  flame  of  such  ardor  in 
fhis  wintry    region.     Sacred  friendship,   where 


154  ANCIENT  HISTOHV. 

hast  thou  spread  thy  pavillion?  Dost  thou 
linger  on  t!ie  sunny  plains  of  India — on  the 
stormy  cliffs  of  Greenland — or  some  sea-girt 
isle  far  in  the  bosom  of  the  deep  ?  Or  hast  thou 
forsaken  our  race,  and  returned  to  thy  native 
skies? 

These  are  some  of  the  traits  of  that  nation 
whose  history  is  to  be  the  subject,  of  our  next 
lecture.  Since  the  fall  of  ancient  Greece  no 
nation  has  risen  so  much  resembling  her  as  the 
United  btates.  But,  unhappily,  we  resemble  her 
least  in  those  points  most  essential  to  our  durabUi- 
ty,  felicity,  and  greatness.  We  resemble- her 
least  in  her  extreme  frugality,  temperance,  virtue, 
and  patriotism.  We  more  closely  copy  the  fahe 
splendor  of  Pericles  than  the  strict  economy  of 
Lycurgus,  and  we  have  made  greater  progress  in 
luxury  in  37  years  than  Greece  made  in  tea 
centuries. 


155 


LECTURE  VII. 


Ancient  Greece — coniimied. 

Tre  history  of  Ancient  Greece,  is  the  history 
of  Sparta,  Athens,  Thebes,  Corinth,  and  Mace- 
don.  One  or  the  other  of  these  powerful  states 
led  the  rest,  and  virtually  gave  law  to  the  whole. 
Writers  reckon  the  constituent  parts  of  Ancient 
Greece  to  be  Macedonia,  Thessaly,  Epirus, 
Greece  Proper,  and  the  Peloponnesus.  These 
territories  were  bounded  on  the  north  by  Thrace 
and  Illyria,  east  by  the  Archipelago,  south  by 
part  of  the  Mediterranean  sea,  and  west  by  the 
Ionian,  another  part  of  the  same  sea ;  compre- 
hending a  considerable  part  of  what  is  now  called 
Turkey  in  Europe. 

The  fortunes  and  revolutions  of  the  country  of 
Greece  owe  much  of  their  fame  and  splendour 
to  the  eloquent  writers,  and  great  geniuses  of  that 
distinguished  country,  yet  they  do  not  wholly  de- 
pend on  that  source  of  authenticity  and  credit. 
Other  monuments  exist  which  speak  a  language 
more  sublime  and  universal.  Fragments  of  ma'r^ 
hie  show  us  where  the  hand  has  moved,  and  the 
eye  directed  of  transcendent  genius.  Nor  do 
these  marble  remnants  exist  in  small  portions. 
They  cover  those  lands  not  only  occupied  by 
Central  Greece,  but  where  her  armies  marched, 
her  colonies  settled,  and  her  arts  flourished. 

The   light  of  history  gives  some  notices  of  the 
Greeks,  as  early  as  loQO  years  before  the  chris 


IB&  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

tian  ffira.  The  exploits  of  their  heroic  ages  art 
embellished  with  the  utmost  etfulgence  of  wit 
and  genius  ;  and  in  the  display  of  these  consists 
their  entire  utility.  In  the  following  lectures, 
the  Grecian  history  will  be  considered  uncler  fou^ 
great  periods. 

The  Jlrst  of  these  extends  from  the  foundation 
of  the  states  of  Greece  to  the  end  of  the  Trojan 
war. 

The  second,  from  the  close  of  the  Trojan  war 
to  the  end  of  the  Persian  invasion,  or  the  bat- 
tle of  Plataea. 

The  third,  from  the  battle  of  Platasa  to  the 
death  of  Alexander. 

The  fourth,  from  the  death  of  Alexander  to  the 
death  of  Cleopatra,  queen  of  Egypt,  when  the 
last  great  division  of  Alexander's  empire  became 
a  province  of  the  Romans. 

The  Grecian  history,  properly  speaking,  lies 
between  the  Trojan  war  and  the  death  of  Alex- 
ander the  Great ;  for  before  the  Trojan  war  it  is, 
iu  a  great  measure,  fabulous,  and  after  the  death 
of  Alexander,  it  is  absorbed  and  lost  in  the  history 
of  new  and  independent  monarchies.  The  Pelo- 
ponnesus, including  the  small  state  of  Attica, 
which  lay  without  the  Corinthian  isthmus,  formed 
by  far  the  most  important  part  of  Greece,  and 
generally  contained  the  plot  of  Grecian  history; 
though  sometimes  it  spreads  far  into  Europe,  and 
still  farther  into  Asia. 

The  sacred  history,  indeed  all  antiquity,  favours 
the  belief,  that  the  Greeks  were  descended  from 
Japhet,  tbe  son  of  Noab.  From  Javan,  it  is 
believed,  the  general  appellation  of  Jones,  or 
lonians,  took  its  rise  ;  as  the  Hebrew  Javan  is 
^^asily  t'lrned  into  the  Greek  Ion.  This  subject 
we  canuot  pursue.     In  very  early  tioaes   there 


GREECE.  157 

'Were'  a  number  of  iucJependent  tribes  settled  in 
the  Pelupoanesus.  The  principal  ol  these  were 
the  Acliaiaiis,  Argives,  Eieans,  iViessenians,  Arca- 
dian!), a^d  Lacoiiians,  vviiose  capital  was  Sparta, 
or  LRd«deiilonr 

According  to  the  testimony  of  the  Grecian  wri- 
ters, the  peojiie  ol  Greece,  at  first,  lived  in  near- 
ly a'  .lavage  slate,  without  social  coaibiDaiion,  law, 
or  government.  In  this  wild  state  Ctcrops  found 
the  country  of  Attica,  1556  years  before  Christ. 
As  Cecrops  was  an  emigrant  fromE^ypt,  he  was 
acquainted  with  the  learning,  arts,  and  policy  of 
that  refined  and  scientiiic  people,  and  was  able 
to  recommend  and  introduce  many  important 
regulations.  He  divided  Attica  into  twelve  dis 
tricts,  combined  them  under  a  regular  form  of 
government,  induced  them,  partly  by  force  and 
partly  by  persuasion,  to  renounce  their  savage 
way  of  life,  and  to  dwell  together  in  towns  and 
cities.  He  founded  the  Areopagus,  a  civil  in- 
stitution, which  was  destined  to  become  the  most 
renowned,  perhaps  the  most  dignified,  court  ever 
formed.  Before  this  grand  court  all  the  great 
causes  of  tlie  nation  were  tried — all  the  important 
questions  and  interests  of  the  people  were  delibe- 
rated, and  every  subject  of  deep  interest  was 
discussed. 

This  instttulion  continued  through  every  pe- 
riod of  ti»e  Athenian  commonwealth,  and  pre- 
^served  it^  dignity  and  splendor  in  the  worst  of 
times.;  It  was  generally  composed  of  men  re- 
markable for  wisdom,  integrity,  and  abilities  ; 
and  the  wisdom  of  this  august  body  of  men  was 
the  continual  bulwark  of  that  renowned  republic. 

Oranaus  was  the  successor  of  Cecrops,  but  it 
is  not  known  in  what  year  before  Christ.     Nor 
i«  there  anv  action  of  his  recorded  worthy  of  par 
H 


J.58  ANGIKNT    HIRTORY. 

iicuiar  notice.  But  Amphictyon,  the  thiid  king 
pf  Athens,  JmiriOrtalized  his  name  by  the  confede- 
ration noticed  in  our  last  lecture.  He  combined 
together  the  twelve  slates  of  Greece,  in  a  general 
(Council  at  Thermopyls,  where  they  sent  their 
representatives  twice  a  year.  To  this  institution, 
doubtless  more  than  io  any  other,  was  owing  the 
security^  prosperity,  and  grandeur  of  ancient 
Greece.  And  it  rnaj^  be  considered  as  the  parent 
pf  all  political  confederacies  of  any  consistency 
or  duration. 

Their  first  care,  when  they  convened,  was  {<?. 
pfFer  sacrifices  to  the  gods,  and  regulate  the  con- 
jserns  of  religion.  And  in  this  they  exhibited  an 
fxample  of  piety  wliich  it  would  be  well  for 
chrisiian  nations  to  follow.  The  interests  and 
concerns  of  every  state  were  here  made  the  sub- 
ject of  profound  investigation  and  careful  provi- 
sion. 

The  Athenians  were  first  in  almost  every  im- 
provement ;  and  most  of  the  great  and  important 
Institutions  of  Greece  originated  in  Athens,  al- 
though r^pavia  was  nearly  as  ancient.  About  4Q 
years  after  {:.'ec!ops  louuded  the  commonwealth  of 
Athens,  Lelex  founded  tliat  of  Laconia,  who've  ca- 
pita!  was  Lacedemon.  Lelex  was  a  desrendanj 
of  Abraham  ;  and  it  appears  that  the  Lacedcmo- 
loians  considered  t!;<:ti!-i^Ives  as  brethren  of  the 
Jeu>.  It!  iiK;  j;21':  (;n:i|)iur  of  the  first  book  of 
''laccabees,  ihcr:'  h  a  letter  iroin  Areus,  king  of 
■acedemon,  to  Onia^-;,  high  priest  of  the  Jews,  un- 
der the  administration  of  Jonathan,  brother  of  Ju- 
jias  Maccabeus,  recognising  that  relation,  and  pro- 
posing the  strictest  amity  and  alliatice  between 
llje  Jewish  and  Spartan  commonweallhs. 

While  the  states  of  Greece  were  rapidly  pro- 
gressing in  civilization  and  po  v^'er,  their  colonie? 


GREECE-  160 

Spread  vvide,  and  tlie  fine  islands  of  the  Archipe- 
lago were  peopled  with  innumerable  swarms  ot 
people  from  Ihe  surrounding  countries.  They 
spread  across  the  sea  eastwardly,  and  arrived  on 
the  beautiful  shores  of  the  Lesser  Asia.  In  the 
course  of  two  centuries  the  flourishing  kingdoro 
of  Troy  arose,  and  Troy  had  become  one  of  the, 
most  splendid  cities  of  western  Asia. 

The  Greeks  were  always  severe  and  vindictive 
to  their  colonies.  Various  causes  of  enmity  and 
jealousy  had  arisen  between  Greece  and  this 
flourishing  section  of  her  foreign  settlements. 
Though  Troy  had  long  been  independent  of  that 
people  from  whom  they  originated,  it  appears  that 
the  Greeks  kept  upon  them  a  jealous  and  haughty 
eye,  and  were  willing  there  should  be  some  cause 
of  complaint  and  contention. 

A  case  of  this  nature  occurred  in  tlie  treache- 
rous conduct  of  Paris,  the  son  of  Priam,  king  of 
Troy. 

A  powerful  alliance  had  been  formed  between 
the  states  of  Lacedemon  and  Argos.  Tyndarus, 
king  of  Sparta,  had  married  his  two  daughters, 
Clytemnestra  and  Helena,  to  the  two  princes  of 
Argos,  Agamemnon  and  Menelaus  ;  the  latter 
of  whom  succeeded  to  the  Spartan  throne,  in  the 
right  of  his  wile  Helena.  This  princess  is  re= 
presented  by  the  poets  as  the  most  perfect  beauty 
of  ancient  times. 

The  opulent  and  luxurious  court  of  Priam, 
king  of  Troy,  had  become  a  school  of  intrigue, 
treachery,  and  vice.  The  sons  of  Priam  were 
celebrated,  some  of  them  for  bravery,  and  others 
for  those  vices  which  have  overthrowm  the  most 
powerful  states.  Ilector,  Priam's  eldest  son,  was 
the  greatest  hero,  the  most  gallant  and  accom- 
plished   prince  of  Asia.     Paris,  another  son    <?( 


160  ANCIEIVT  HISTORY. 

Priam,  possessed  every  quality  of  a  finished  cour- 
tier, and  was  accounted  the  most  beautiful  man  ot' 
his  time. 

Paris,  Induced  by  the  hospitality  of  the  Spar- 
tan court,  and  probably  by  the  fame  of  Helena, 
for  whose  hand  in  marriage  the  most  illustrious 
princes  of  the  time  had  been  rivals,  visited  Me- 
nelaus,  and  was  received  with  every  mark  of  ho- 
nour and  distinction  among  the  Lacedemonians. 
But  to  requite  this  kindness,  he  prevailed  on  the 
queen  of  Sparta  to  abandon  her  husband,  and 
make  her  escape  from  Greece.  According  to 
Homer's  authority,  she  went  with  Paris  to  Troy  ; 
but  other  writers  assert,  that  the  vessel  in  which 
she  sailed  was  driven  into  Egypt,  and  that  she  was 
detained  there  till  after  the  iall  of  Troy. 

The  Greeks,  with  great  justness,  resented  this 
injury,  and  her  husband,  Menelaus,  and  his  bro- 
ther Agamemnon,  king  of  Argos,  the  two  most 
powerful  princes  of  Greece,  prevailed  on  the  grand 
council  of  the  Amphictyons  to  make  war  on  Pri- 
am, king  of  Troy.  A  numerous  army  was  assem- 
bled, the  command  of  which  was  given  to  Aga- 
infmnon,  who  was  thence  styled  kihg  of  kings. 
This  army  crossed  the  sea  from  Greece  to  Apia 
Minor;  not,  hov/ever,  without  great  delays,  and  a 
variety  of  injpt'd'ments,  which  .seemed  often  to 
threaten  to  render  the  whole  expedition  unsuc- 
cessful. And  there  can  be  no  doubt,  had  the 
Greeks  struck  immediately  at  Troy,  the  city  must 
have  fallen  before  the-n  ;  as  the  Trojins  at  first 
bad  no  force  pqu';!  to  a  conflict  with  the  princes 
of  Greece.  The  Trojans  at  length  grew  formida- 
ble by  alliances,  and  by  learning  the  art  of  war 
from  their  invaders;  and  the  nations  of  the  Les- 
ser Asia  joined  in  one  common  cauic  to  repel  the 
armies  of  the  Greeks. 


GREECE.  161 

In  this  story  Homer  laid  the  plot  of  his  epic 
poem.  Perhaps  a  subject  equally  favourable  in 
point  of  time,  events,  and  circumstances,  can  be 
found  no  where  else  in  the  annals  of  the  world. 
The  age  of  poetry  must  lie  near  that  of  fiction. 
Genius  must  be  more  mature  than  taste  ;  it  can 
therefore  only  fall  on  that  approximation  of 
society  towards  refinement,  which  lies  between 
savage  barbarity  and  high  refinement.  The 
events  must  be  selected  out  of  the  solemn  twilight 
of  antiquity;  must  be  distant  in  time  and  place, 
in  order  that  fiction  and  machinery  may  be 
furnished  as  their  aid    may  be  necessary. 

Milton's  Devil  and  Homer's  Achilles  stand  on 
nearly  equal  footing,  in  point  of  amiable  qualities, 
and  moral  virtues.  They  appear  equally  proud, 
fierce,  revengeful,  and  merciless.  Achilles  some- 
times wept,  and  Satan  felt  regret  over  the  inno- 
cence, weakness,  and  danger  of  our  first  parents. 

This  war  had  now  been  protracted  for  nearly 
ten  jears,  and  many  of  the  principal  heroes  on 
both  sides  were  slain,  when  the  Greeks  began  to 
despair  of  taking  the  city,  and  were  on  the  point 
of  returning  to  their  native  country.  Hector,  the 
formidable  hero  of  Troy,  was  indeed  slain,  but  the 
Greeks,  on  their  part,  had  lost  Achilles,  in  whose 
arm  their  utmost  confidence  was  placed.  In 
this  moment  of  discouragement,  they  adopted  a 
stratagem,  as  a  last  attempt,  which,  if  it  failed  of 
success,  would  put  an  end  to  the  war,  by  the  loss 
of  most  of  their  bravest  heroes.  They  built  a 
fabric,  in  the  figure  of  a  horse,  of  amazing  size  ; 
its  hollow  caverns  they  filled  with  armed  men, 
chosen  from  the  bravest  and  most  daring  spirits. 
Pretending  this  machine  as  an  offering  o  Minerva, 
they  had  the  address  to  prevail  on  the  Trojan 
to  convey  it  into  the  citadel,  for  which  purpose 
they  took  doAvn  a  portion  of  the  wallj  as  it  coula 
J  4* 


1612  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

not  be  admitted  at  any   of  the    gates,  by  reason 
of  its  size. 

This  plan  succeeded  to  their  utmost  wish.  In 
the  dead  of  night  the  heroes  issued  from  their 
concealment,  slew  the  gu&rd-,  opened  the  gates  of 
the  city,  and  let  in  the  hostile  army.  The  city 
was  taken,  nor  was  ever  destruction  more  com- 
plete, or  national  vengeance  more  exemplary. 
The  story,  however,  of  the  wooden  horse  is 
discredited  by  some  writers,  who  say  that  JEne^s, 
Antenor,  and  Polydamas,  three  Trojan  princes, 
let  in  the  Greeks,  by  treachery,  into  the  Sccan 
gate,  over  which  there  was  placed  the  statue  of  a 
horse  ;  in  allusion  to  which  the  poetic  fancy  of 
Virgil  dresses  up  the  account  in  the  manner  he 
presents  it  in  the  ^neid. 

If  the  Greeks  had  occasion  to  triumph  in  the 
destruction  of  Troy,  they  had  equal  reason  to 
deplore  their  own  calamities,  in  their  return  to 
their  native  country.  For  whilst  their  armies 
were  gradually  wasting  away,  in  the  hostile 
fields,  of  Asia,  their  several  states  at  honie 
sustained  material  changes.  On  their  arrival  the 
heroes  who  had  conquered  Troy  found  enemies, 
still  more  dangerous,  in  their  own  dominionn. 
This  absence  had  given  ri^;e  to  f^iciions,  usurpa- 
tions, revolts,  and  revolutions. 

Idomeneus  and  Philoctetes  v/ere  expelled  from 
their  dominions.  Agamemnon  w^ts  murdered  by 
bis  wite  imm.ediately  after  his  return  ;  Menelaus 
and  Ulysses  wandered  for  a  long  time,  the  latter 
not  returning  till  alter  many  years.  In  short,  the 
states  of  Greece,  after  the  Trojan  war,  seemed 
likely  to  return  back  to  the  barbarous  state  from 
whence  they  had  risen.  Nor  has  the  demorali- 
zing effect  of  war  been  more  seen  in  any  of  the 
ancient  nations.     Scenes  of  the  most  enormous 


GREECE.  i63 

barbarity,  treachery,  and  cruelty,  v/ere  exhibited 
in  every  state  of  Greece;  and  several  centuries 
of  wretchedness  and  disorder  followed  the 
Trojan  expedition. 

Nearly  a  century  after  the  fall  of  Troy,  a 
revolution  happened  in  Greece,  which  falls  more 
clearly  wiilim  the  verge  of  the  regular  annals  of 
that  nation.  From  Argos  and  ryJycene,a  power- 
ful section  of  the  PelopcnneKUS,  the  family  ol 
Hercules  had  been  driven  by  Pelops  a  Phrygian. 
The  descendants  of  Pelops,  from  whom,  indeed, 
the  peninsula  derived  its  name,  held  the  ascen- 
dency in  the  Peloponnesus  till  about  80  years 
after  the  Trojan  war.  The  courts  of  the  princes 
of  this  atrocious  dynasty  were  distinauished  by 
the  perpetraiion  of  the  most  flagrant  and  enor- 
mous crimes.  Here  the  Grecian  tragedians 
found  an  ample  field,  and  abundant  materials  for 
tbr^ir  famous  tragedies.  The  atrocities  of  those 
infamous  princes,  from  their  peculiar  nature  and 
character,  in  all  probability  tirst  excited  the  de- 
sign of  tragedy.  But,  unhappily  for  mankind, 
many  other  princes  beside  the  house  of  Pelops 
have  furnished  materials  for  the  tragic  muse. 

The  tieraclidse,  after  several  fruitless  attempts, 
at  length,  under  Eurysthenes  and  Procles,  were 
able  to  expel  the  Peiopidffi  from  Lacedemon, 
and  seized  the  government  of  that  powerful 
state.  But  an  sera,  in  Greece,  does  not  occur  of 
any  considerable  importance  till  the  legislation 
of  Lycurgus.  To  this,  therefore,  we  shall  imme- 
diately proceed.  But  here  it  is  proper  to  ob- 
serve, that  all  the  states  of  Greece  had  laid  aside 
the  monarchical  form  of  government,  and  had 
adopted  the  republican.  Athens,  perhaps,  ex- 
hibited the  simplest  form  of  a  deraocratical 
republic   which  the    world  ever  saw.     All  the 


164  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

important  questions  of  the  state  were  discussed 
and  !^ettlf-d  in  the  assembly  of  the  people, 
which  was  act  a  representative,  or  elective  body, 
but  a  body  composed  of  every  free  citizen,  con- 
vened as  occasion  required. 

Yet  few  nations  have  been  more  strict  and  cau- 
tious in  the  terms  of  naturalization.  An  alien 
could  only  become  a  citizen  of  Athens  in  the 
fourth  in  descent,  or  his  great-grandchildren,  and 
that  by  the  perpetual  residence  of  each  grade  in 
the  series  of  descent,  within  the  territories  of  At- 
tica, or  in  such  parts  of  Greece  as  their  laws  pre- 
scribed. Fevv  regulations  are  more  essential  to 
the  welfare  of  a  state  than  those  which  relate  to 
the  naturalization  of  aliens. 

Nothing,  says  Roliin,  in  profane  history  is  bet- 
ter attested,  yet  nothing  more  incredible,  than 
the  fabric  of  the  Spartan  government  raised  by 
Lycurgus.  The  states  of  Greece  rose  but  slow- 
ly out  of  that  wretched  and  disordered  state, 
which  is  the  inseparable  companion  of  a  govern- 
ment badly  framed  and  executed.  The  people 
were  still  uncivilized  ;  they  had  no  written  laws  ; 
the  authority  of  the  council  of  Amphictycns  was 
weak,  and  the  states  were  continually  harassed  by 
war,  revolutions,  and  anarchy. 

About  880  years  before  the  christian  sera,  Ly- 
curgus, the  Spartan  lav/giver,  was  born.  He  was 
the  son  of  Eunomus,  one  of  the  two  Spartan  kings 
in  whom  the  power  of  government  was  jointly 
vested.  He  might  have  raised  himself  to  the  un- 
divided throne,  but  he  generously  waved  his 
claim  to  royal  power,  and  declined  the  honour,  as 
well  as  the  labour  and  danger,  of  that  elevated 
station,  in  favour  of  Leotichides,  the  legal  heir, 
who  was  then  in  infancy.  Iphitus,  prince  oi  Elis,, 
had   been   assisted   by  Lycurgus  in  restoring  the 


eREEcc.  165 

Olympic  games,  of  the  nature  and  influence  of 
whicij  we  spake  in  the  preceding  lecture.  This 
event  had  a  happy  effect  on  the  Grecian  repub- 
lics ;  it  recalled  their  unsettled  and  roving  tempers 
to  new  objects  of  emulation,  and  new  pursuits  of 
glory. 

But  the  ambition  of  Lycurgus  aimed  at  a  no-= 
blcr  object  than  royalty:  he  aspired  to  a  higher 
elevation  than  the  throne  of  a  monarch.  Instead 
of  beneblting  the  Lacedemonians,  by  administering 
wisely  a  corrupt  and  defective  plan  of  govern- 
ment, he  formed  the  design  of  rendering  their  go- 
vernment more  perfect,  more  efficient ;  and  in 
the  f-nd  be  reared  himself  a  stupendous  monument 
of  wisdom,  energy,  and  legislative  powers.  To 
accomplish  himself  more  fully  for  this  arduous  at- 
tempt, he  travelled  abroad,  and  visited  the  wisest 
nations  of  his  time.  The  island  of  Crete  had 
been  famed  for  the  wise  laws  and  regulations  of 
Minos.  From  exploring  those  institutions,  he  tra- 
velled and  surveyed  the  legislative  systems  of 
Asia  and  Egypt.  His  stay  abroad  was  protract- 
ed, which  gave  the  Spartans  a  more  exalted  idea  of 
his  accumulated  wisdom,  and  increased  their  de* 
sire  to  see  the  commencement  of  his  intended  in- 
novations. 

Nor  '.vouid  be,  on  his  return,  enter  on  his  great 
work  ti;!  he  had  consulted  the  Delphian  oracle, 
by  which  he  was  informed  that  his  republic  should 
be  the  most  perfect  ever  formed.  The  oraclp 
moreover  declared  him  the  friend  of  the  gods. 
With  this  extent  and  majesty  of  preparation,  Ly- 
curgus proceeded  to  effectuate  a  scheme  of  go- 
vernment which  had  been  the  result  ot  bis  ex- 
tended researches  ;  in  which,  however,  still  more 
praise  is  due  to  his  profound  knowledge,  penetra- 
tion and  foresight — to  the  vast  resources  and  gi- 


^66  AJJCIEAT  HISTORV. 

gantic  powers  of  his  understanding,  tliaTi  tn 
what  he  had  gleaned  from  experience  and  obser- 
vation. 

An  intermediate  body  between  the  chief  magis- 
trate and  the  people  was  his  first  and  most  impor- 
tant constitutional  provision.  He  lT)rmed  a  senate^ 
consisting  of  i28  persons  ;  these,  together  with  the 
two  kings,  who  sat  with  thejn,  made  a  body  of  SO 
persons,  which  formed  the  highest  branch  of  the 
legislative  organ.  They  stood  between  the  king 
and  the  people,  as  a  barrier  to  check  and  repress 
the  encroachments  of  either.  This  senate  was 
composed  of  men  advanced  in  years,  and  eminent 
for  wisdom  and  integrity. 

Another  body  was,  some  time  afterwards,  added 
to  the  Spartan  government,  consisting  of  five  per- 
sons, called  the  Ephori  ;  these  answered,  in  a  great 
measure,  to  the  Roman  tribunes.  This  was  a  su- 
preme court  of  very  great  powers  ;  as  they  had 
a  right,  on  proper  evidence,  or  even  on  suspicion, 
to  impeach  any  man  in  the  commonwealth  ;  not 
even  excepting  the  kings  themselves.  We  may 
form  some  judgment  of  the  just  equilibrium  of 
the  Lacedemonian  government,  and  of  the  man- 
ner in  which  it  must  have  been  executed,  when 
we  understand  that  this  frame  of  government 
stood  unshaken  and  unimpaired  for  700  years:  a 
proof  not  only  of  the  wisdom  of  the  government, 
but  of  the  temperance,  unanimity,  and  modera- 
tion of  the  Lacedemonians. 

This  astonishing  people^  according  to  a  French 
maxim  I  have  somewhere  lately  read,  hud  little 
constitution,  and  much  government.  The  articles 
of  their  constitution  were,  indeed,  (aw  and  sim- 
ple, but  their  regulations  deep  and  radical.  The 
people,  at  this  time,  generally  were  very  poor. 
All  the  land  was  in  a  few  hands.     How  can  we 


ORKECE,  lu, 

imagine  this  great  legislator  remedied  this  defect  ? 
In  a  way  as  inconceivable  to  us  as  the  love  of  Py- 
thias and  Damon.  He  induced  the  holders  of 
lands  to  consent  to  an  equal  division  of  all  the 
lands  throughout  the  state.  By  what  unknown 
art  he  carried  this  point,  it  is  impossible  to  con- 
ceive, unless  we  may  believe  that  people  in 
those  times  held  property  with  a  looser  hand  than 
they  do  now.  This  point,  however,  he  accom- 
plished ;  and  the  lands  of  Laconia  were  actually 
divided  into  50,000  shares,  and  those  of  Sparta  in- 
to 9,000,  and  equally  distributed. 

Another  regulation,  still  more  surprising,  he 
carried  into  complete  effect,  which  was  the  abo- 
lition of  the  use  of  gold  and  silver.  He  caused 
that  the  current  coin  should  be  iron,  and  that  so 
heavy,  that  a  cart  and  oxen  were  necessary  lo  car- 
ry of  it  to  the  value  of  100  dollars.  This  measure 
essentially  affected  all  the  arts  of  luxury,  struck 
at  the  root  of  those  useless  elegancies,  which  he 
con-sidered  as  incompatible  with  strict  economy 
and  sound  morals. 

Lycurgus  proceeded  further  to  abolish  all  pos- 
sible indulgence  to  luxurious  living.  He  caused 
all  the  citizens  to  eat  at  public  tables,  in  which 
the  diet  was  exactly  prescribed  by  law.  At  each 
table  fifteen  persons  were  seated,  each  one  of 
which  was  required  to  furnish  one  bushel  of  flour, 
eight  measures  of  wine,  five  pounds  of  cheese, 
two  pounds  and  a  half  of  figs,  and  a  small  sum  of 
money,  to  defray  the  culinary  expenses.  Every 
person  was  obliged  to  eat  at  these  tables  ;  and 
so  rigid  were  they  in  this  requisition,  that  king 
Agis  was  reprimanded,  and  punished,  for  eating 
at  his  own  table,  in  company  with  his  queen,  af- 
ter returning  from  a  military  expedition,  in  which 
Ve  had  been  victorious. 


168  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

'J'he  grand  object  of  the  institutions  of  Lycur- 
|us  was,  to  form  a  brave,  powerful,  and  warlike 
people.  This  object  he  accomplished,  but  he 
left  the  mind  unformed.  Had  he  paid  a  pro- 
portionable attention  to  the  cultivation  of  the  in- 
tellectual and  moral  powers,  the  Lacedemonians 
would  have  been  superior  to  every  nation  that 
ever  existed.  Here  he  failed  of  promotino;  the 
true  dignity  and  happiness  of  mankind.  Yet,  it 
must  be  confessed,  he  formed  the  most  vigt^rous, 
economical,  finiij  and  resolute  society  of  men 
ever  seen. 

An  attempt  of  the  Athenians,  about  two  centu- 
ries after  this,  to  regulate  and  new-model  their  go- 
vernment, was  far  less  successful.  The  freedom 
and  boldness  of  the  Athenians,  and  the  ambition 
of  their  leaders,  was  a  continual  source  of  dissen- 
sion, and  their  assemblies  at  length  became  so 
turbulent  and  seditious,  that  they  were  often 
threatened  with  anarchy  or  despotism.  Draco, 
one  of  their  ablest  statesmen,  was  requested  by 
the  people  to  attempt  a  reform  in  their  constitu 
tion.  His  laws  became  a  remedy  far  more  terri- 
ble than  the  disease  they  were  intended  to  re- 
move. He  made  every  offence  capital,  without 
regard  to  its  nature  or  aggravations.  It  was  said 
of  him,  therefore,  that  his  laws  were  written  with 
blood. 

The  laws  of  Draco  were,  indeed,  the  first  writ- 
ten laws  ever  promulgated  in  Greece.  This  was 
624  years  before  the  christian  £era.  As  might 
have  been  expected,  the  lively  sensibility  of  the 
Athenian  people  could  not  long  sustain  the  pres- 
sure of  these  sanguinary  institutions.  Every  sen- 
timent of  justice  must  revolt  from  that  law  which 
punishes  the  slightest  violation  of  duty  as  the 
most  atrocious  act  gf  wickedness,  and  equals  in 


«REECE.  169 

pain    and    infamy   the   venial  offender  with   the 
most  abhorred,  abandoned  villain. 

The  institutions  of  Draco,  however,  and  the  ca- 
lamities they  drew  after  them,  lasted  20  years, 
when  Sobn,  the  wisest  and  the  most  amiable  of 
all  the  Grecian  legislators,  introduced  a  salutary 
reform  into  the  government  of  Athens.  He  dimi- 
nished nothing  of  its  republican  form,  but  endea- 
voured to  relieve  the  burdens  of  the  poor  ;  and  one 
of  the  first  measures  of  the  new  system  was,  a  re- 
lease ot  the  poor  from  the  debts  and  the  various 
exactions  by  which  they  were  pressed.  He  ren- 
dered every  department  of  the  government  more 
just,  more  definite,  more  energetic,  and  moulded 
the  Athenian  republic  into  its  noblest  form. 

The  famous  court  called  the  Areopagus  had 
been  long  established;  a  regulation  was  made  by 
Solon,  that  none  could  hold  a  seat  in  this  august 
body  but  such  men  as  had  held  the  office  of  ar- 
cbon,  or  first  magistrate  of  the  republic.  They 
>vere  men  venerable  for  age,  wisdom,  and  inte- 
grity. And  what  is  remarkable  of  this  court,  they 
always  sat  at  night,  or  when  the  hall  of  their  ses- 
sion  was  darkened,  that  no  external  object  might 
influence  the  operation  of  the  mind,  or  any  casual 
impression  on  the  senses  warp  the  judgme^nt  from 
strict  and  impartial  truth.  The  orators  who 
were  admitted  to  speak  before  this  court,  were 
allowed  to  make  no  exordium,  digression,  or  pe- 
roration. Such  was  the  reputation  of  this  Athe- 
nian council,  that  distant  nations  often  appealed 
to  its  decision.  Even  the  Romans  sometimes 
brought  causes  of  importance,  which  were  too  in- 
tricate to  be  determined  by  their  senate,  before 
this  august  tribunal,  of  whose  superior  compe- 
tency they  did  not  pretend  to  doubt. 

Beside  the  Areopagus,  Solon  instituted  another 
15 


170  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

council  or  assembly,  of  400  ;  100  iVom  each  tribe. 
In  Ibis  assembly  all  matters  of  importance  were 
proposed,  agitated,  and  considered,  before  they 
went  to  the  great  assembly  of  the  people,  by  whose 
vote  alone  a  final  decision  could  take  place.  This 
body  formed  a  kind  of  portico  to  the  general  fa- 
bric, or  assembly  of  the  people,  and  had  great 
influence,  by  giving  form  and  direction  to  such 
matters  as  were  ultimately  designed  for  popular 
discussion.  Here  they  were  placed  in  their  true 
light ;  and  this  assembly  acted  as  a  kind  of  grand 
jury,  in  which  bills  were  prepared,  and  subjects 
arranu;ed,  for  the  consideration  and  decision  of  the 
lower  house. 

We  have  taken  a  brief  survey  of  the  govern- 
ment of  two  of  the  leading  states  of  Greece.  It 
will  be  sufficient  to  remark  that  there  was  a  gene- 
ral resemblance  through  the  whole — the  smaller 
states  copied  from  the  larger  ;  and  though  in  most 
of  them  there  were  some  remains  of  monarchy, 
yet  they  were  a  free  people,  aad  knew  their  own 
rights  better,  and  enjoyed  them  more  fully,  and 
much  longer,  than  any  of  the  ancient  nations. 

The  history  of  Greece  is  the  history  of  go- 
vernments, and  its  details  are  deeply  interesting 
to  all  nations,  who  acknowledge  the  obligation 
of  constitutions,  and  the  authority  of  laws.  Na- 
tions who  once  gain  their  freedom,  remain  free 
till  they  give  themselves  a  master,  and  rivet  their 
chains  by  their  own  voluntary  acts.  Thus  did  all 
the  states  of  Greece  ;  thus  afterwards  did  the  Ro- 
man republic  ;  and  thus  have  done  all  the  free  go- 
vernments of  Europe. 

The  situation  of  the  Lacedemonians  in  the  Pe- 
loponnesus ;  the  extent  and  fertility  of  their  ter- 
ritories, but  especially  the  influence  of  the  insti- 
tutions of  Lycurgus,  give  tliem  as  obvious  supe- 


GREECE.  17| 

riority  to  all  the  Grecian  states.  This  they  took 
care  to  evince  on  every  convenient  occasion.  And 
as  early  as  the  reign  of  Cyrus,  they  were  so  for- 
midable, as  to  interfere  in  the  atfairs  of  Asia. 
When  Cyrus  invaded  Crcesus,  king  of  Lydia,  they 
had  promised  aid  to  the  Lydians,  and  their  relief, 
which  might  have  protracted  the  Lydian  monar- 
chy, vvas  in  forwardness,  but  did  not  arrive  in 
time  to  be  of  use  to  Crcesus.  They  had  sent 
an  ambassador  to  Cyrus  with  a  message  peculiar- 
ly characteristic  of  their  nation.  The  Spartan 
ambassador  told  Cyrus  if  he  invaded  any  of  tht 
Grecian  allies,  that  the  Lacedemonians  would 
know  how  to  punish  his  injustice. 

Cyrus  replied,  that  if  his  health  was  spared,  he 
hoped  to  give  them  greater  cause  of  complaint 
than  the  invasion  of  their  allies.  He  then,  no 
doubt,  meditated  the  invasion  of  Greece  ;  but  this 
he  was  never  able  to  accomplish,  and  it  was  pro- 
bably well  for  him  that  he  never  did  conflict  with 
the  rising  fortunes  of  that  warlike  nation.  Their 
warfare  vvas,  indeed,  formidable,  and  had  they 
maintained  their  primitive  vigour  and  martial 
spirit,  they  would  have  presented  a  barrier  to  the 
armies  of  Rome. 

The  territorial  advantages  of  Sparta  were  far 
superior  to  those  of  Athens.  But  the  Athenians, 
by  their  arts,  commerce,  and  colonies,  gradually 
progressed  in  wealth  and  resources,  and  became 
formidable  by  sea,  as  well  as  by  land.  It  was 
both  the  wisdom  and  felicity  of  the  Greeks  that 
their  wars  were  seldom  wars  of  conquest  or  in- 
vasion, and  their  ambition  did  not  aim  at  extent 
of  empire  ;  their  dominions,  at  the  time  of  the 
Trojan  war,  were  nearly  as  large  as  they  were  in 
any  subsequent  period   of  their  history,  til.1  we 


172  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

arrrive  at  the  aem  of  Alexander's  conquest :  under 
him  their  system  was  changed. 

The  Persian  power  was  the  great  and  formida- 
ble object  with  which  the  Grecian  states  and  colo- 
nies had  constantly  to  conflict.  We  have  already- 
considered  the  extent  of  the  Persian  dominions, 
and  they  lay  bordering  on  the  Greeks,  from  the 
Hellespont  through  all  the  western  shores  of  Asia, 
and  the  north  of  Africa.  As  the  Greeks  grew 
powerful,  they  planted  their  colonies  on  the 
coasts  of  Asia  Minor,  and  in  the  islands.  This 
was  agreeable  to  their  general  policy,  and  they 
conquered  less,  and  colonized  more,  than  any 
nation,  of  equal  power  and  resources,  in  ancient 
times. 


IT 


LECTURE  VIIL 


Ancient  Greece — continued. 

The  states  of  Greece  could  not  extend  their 
territories  east  or  south,  without  interfering  with 
the  Persians.  That  great  empire  presented  a 
barrier,  t>om  the  Hellespont  to  Egypt,  and  had 
engrossed  many  islands  along  the  coast.  The 
ambition  of  the  Greeks  led  them  rather  to  colo- 
nize and  settle,  than  to  conquer  and  destroy.  Yet 
their  fleets  and  their  colonies  often  could  not  avoid, 
and  as  often  sought,  a  collision  with  the  arms  of 
Persia.  And  as  they  understood  both  the  use  of 
arms  and  the  power  of  sophistry  better  than  the 
Persians,  they  gradually  gained  upon  the  masters 
of  Asia.  At  first,  the  innumerable  armies,  and 
exhaustless  wealth  of  the  Persians,  seemed  to  have 
little  cause  to  fear  a  handful  of  Greeks,  situated 
in  the  rocks,  and  hills,  and  islands  of  Europe  ; 
for  one  of  the  smallest  of  the  Persian  provinces 
could  marshal  a  larger  army  than  all  Greece  ; 
and  as  it  was  known  that  the  Greeks  were  poor, 
they  presented  no  object,  at  first,  which  could  in- 
vite an  invader.  It  is  not  improbable,  that  when 
Cyrus  demanded  who  the  Lacedemonians  were, 
he  did  not,  indeed,  know  of  any  such  people. 

The  Persian  monarchs  did  not  long  remain  in 
ignorance  ;  they  soon  had  sufficient  to  remind 
them  of  Greece,  in  general,  and  of  Sparta  and 
Athens,  in  particular.  The  Athenians  by  sea, 
an(4  the  Lacedemonians  by  land,  first  became 
15* 


174  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

troublesome,  and,  at  length,  formidable  to  the 
Persians.  And  the  history  of  these  two  states  is 
a  full  and  fair  experiment  of  the  comparative  va- 
lue and  importance  of  agriculture  and  commerce. 
The  Lacedemonians,  who  not  only  held  Laconia, 
but  the  rich  and  valuable  lands  of  the  Messenians, 
and  were  masters  of  half  the  arable  land  in  the  Pe- 
loponnesus, were  the  most  perfectly  agricultural 
people  that  perhaps  ever  existed.  We  have  seen 
Lycurgus  abolisi)ing  the  use  of  gold  and  silver 
among  them.  They  were  allowed  to  wear  no- 
thing but  what  they  could  make.  Domestic  manu- 
factures were  carried  on  in  every  house.  Silks, 
and  gay  clothing,  and  foreign  luxuries,  were  com- 
pletely prohibited.  See  them  seated  at  their 
public  tables,  fifteen  in  a  set,  and  partaking  of 
their  celebrated  black  broth.  And  as  to  their 
houses,  Lycurgus  allowed  them  no  tools  in  build- 
ing but  the  hatchet  and  saw. 

But,  perhaps,  it  will  be  said  they  were  free, 
independent,  and  happy.  As  to  their  happiness, 
we  must  judge  of  it  as  we  can,  from  our  know- 
ledge of  what  constitutes  the  essence  of  human 
felicity.  They  had  many  ingredients  in  their 
dish  of  happiness  which  would  taste  bitter  to  us. 
With  regard  to  freedom,  they  were  strangers  to 
that  heavenly  privilege.  They  held  in  their  ser- 
vice a  nation  of  slaves.  The  Helots,  a  people 
who  lived  among  them,  and  performed  all  their 
servile  labour,  were,  perhaps,  as  numerous  as 
thei?  masters.  These  wretched  beings  resem- 
bled much,  in  thejr  situation  and  deplorable  des- 
tiny, the  slaves  of  our  .-oufhern  states.  They  were 
doomed  to  intense,  intoierable.  and  interminable 
bondage.  They  viere  regarded  as  much  the  pro- 
perty of  the  ovvnerso:  lands  on  t-vhich  they  laboured 
as  the  horses  and  cattie  who  laboured  with  them. 


GREECE.  175 

They  often  raised  horrible  insurrections  and 
massacres,  in  hopes  of  gaining  their  freedom.  To 
guard  against  these,  all  the  vigilance  of  the  laws, 
all  the  rigours  of  their  jealous  tyrants,  all  the 
watchful  energies  of  a  military  force,  were  con- 
tinually employed.  If,  instead  of  abolishing  the 
use  of  gold  and  silver,  Lycurgus  had  abolished  the 
horrible  oppression  of  the  Helots,  a  nation  as  me- 
ritorious in  the  sight  of  heaven  as  their  proud 
masters,  he  would  have  conferred  a  greater  obli- 
gation on  mankind,  in  all  his  institutions,  there 
was  scarce  a  tinge  of  philanthropy.  His  great 
©bject  was,  the  aggrandizement  of  one  class  of 
human  beings,  supported  by  the  depression  and 
misery  of  another. 

The  Lacedemonians  never  traded — they  knev^^ 
no  luxury — they  lived  in  houses  built  of  rough 
materials — they  lived  at  public  tables — fed  on 
black  broth,  and  despised  every  thing  effeminate 
or  luxurious.  They  were  a  race  of  soldiers; 
equally  stern  and  tierce  both  in  peace  and  war. 
In  vain  you  look  for  one  lovely  trait  of  character  : 
and  they  never  became  either  a  numerous  or  a 
polished  people  ;  and  were  never  a  happy  peo- 
ple, as  far  as  happiness  has  any  connexion  with 
the  cultivation  of  the  humane  and  tender  feelings. 

The  Athenians,  whose  territory  of  Attica  was 
not  remarkably  fruitful,  early  became  commer- 
cial ;  their  power  on  the  sea  soon  grew  terrible  to 
the  fleets  of  Persia,  and  even  of  Carthage.  Their 
colonies  became  numerous,  and  their  foreign  set- 
tlements flourishing.  Tiiey  carried  their  arts 
abroad,  and,  in  return,  brought  home  the  commo- 
dities of  other  nations.  By  these  means,  and  un- 
der the  influence  of  a  long  series  of  events,  the 
Athenian  state  rose  to  a  height  of  power  which 
set  every  nation  at  defiance,   and  enabled  her  to 


176  ANCIENT  HISTORT. 

triumph  over  the  utmost  efforts  of  the  Persian 
mon.-^rchs. 

Defensive  wars  are  often  as  beneficial,  as 
offensive  are  ruinous  to  a  nation.  From  the 
time  of  Cyrus,  the  invasion  and  subjugation  of 
Greece  had  been  a  favourite  object  with  the 
Persian  courts.  Cyrus  himself  threatened  a 
visit  to  the  peninsula,  and  the  provocation  t© 
accomplish  this  purpose  increased  in  every  suc- 
ceeding reign,  till  it  was  attempted  by  Darius 
Hystaspes,  and  after  him  by  Xerxes  the  Great, 
as  noticed  in  the  lecture  on  Persia.  These  de- 
fensive wars  neither  exhausted  the  resources,  nor 
broke  the  spirit  of  the  Greeks. 

But  at  the  close  of  the  Persian  invasion,  a  scene 
of  ambition  and  intrigue  ensued,  which  embroiled 
the  states  of  Greece  ;  and  the  happiest  period  of 
that  enlightened  and  enterprising  people  no 
sooner  arrived,  than  it  was  past  forever.  The 
power  and  splendor  of  the  Athenian  common- 
wealth had  long  been  an  object  of  jealousy  to  the 
Lacedemonians.  At  the  battle  of  Marathon  the 
genius  of  Athens  was  displayed,  and  in  the 
various  operations  of  the  Persian  invasions,  the 
Athenians  assumed  that  superiority  to  which  their 
wealth,  numbers,  and  diversity  of  talents  seemed 
to  justify  their  title.  Sparta  had  very  recently 
made  a  most  daring  attempt  to  subvert  and  ruin 
the  Athenians.  A  strong  and  secret  influence 
had  been  used  in  the  general  councils  of  Greece, 
to  procure  a  decree  that  the  Greeks  should  hold 
no  vvalied  town  without  the  Peloponnesus.  The 
reason  alleged  was,  that,  as  it  would  probably 
fall  into  the  hands  of  an  enemy,  it  would  furnish 
them  with  a  fortress  from  which  they  might  act 
successfully  against  the  Peloponnesian  states. 
This  measure   was   set   on  faot   by  L^coilpvpn'^ 


GREECE.  177 

tnd  was  aimed  directly  at  Athens,  which  was 
without  the  peninsula,  and  was  daily  becoming 
wore  strongly  fortified.  The  impolicy  of  this 
measure  was  as  obvious  as  its  injustice  was 
flagrant.  Subsequent  events  showed  how  much 
the  safety  of  all  Greece  depended  on  the  power 
of  Athens. 

Two  men  at  this  time  flourished  in  Athens, 
who  were  able  to  thwart  the  ambitious  projects 
of  Sparta,  and  to  defend  their  country  from 
foreign  invasion.  Aristides,  surnamed  the  justy 
and  Themistocles,  to  whom  the  states  of  Greece 
owed  more  than  to  any  other  individual.  The 
vigorous  policy  of  these  two  great  men  conducted 
their  countrymen  through  the  dangers  and 
calamities  of  the  Persian  war,  which  was  closed 
at  the  battle  of  Piataea. 

But  few  states  or  individuals  can  bear  eleva- 
tion. Athens,  no  longer  dreading  the  resentment 
of  her  haughty  rival,  assumed  an  attitude  which 
excited  general  alarm  and  indignation.  Under 
the  authority  of  Pericles,  the|Athenians  sent  a 
mandate  to  all  the  states  of  Greece  to  assemble 
at  Athens,  to  make  arrangements  for  repairing 
the  ruined  temples,  and  doing  honour  to  the  gods. 
No  man  ever  made  so  splendid  a  figure  in  Athens 
as  Pericles:  in  eloquence  he  fell  little  short  of 
Demosthenes,  and  in  the  talents  of  the  statesman 
and  commander,  he  might  compare  with  the 
most  eminent  of  the  Greeks.  In  many  points  of 
character  he  resembled  Pompey  among  the 
Romans.  There  was  a  dignity  of  carriage, 
blended  with  manners  the  most  fascinating  ;  bis 
mind  and  manners  were  formed  to  magnificence 
and  greatness. 

Had  his  ambition  stopped  at  making  Athens 
the  arbiter  of  Greece,  he  would  have   been  le:;s 


178  ANCIENT  HISTOF^Vo 

■censurable  ;  but  he  must  be  the  head  of  Athen?. 
The  liberties  of  Greece  had  a  greater  enemy  in 
Pericles  than  in  Alexander.  Pericles  laid  the 
foundation,  Philip  built  the  walls,  and  Alexander 
completed  the  fabric,  of  despotism. 

The  order  of  Pericles  for  convening:;  the  states 
of  Greece  at  Athens  was  received  with  various 
emotions  :  hy  some  it  was  obeyed,  by  others 
treated  with  inattention.  The  Spartans  heard  it 
with  indignation,  as  the  signal  for  demanding 
homage.  The  Peloponnesian  states  generally 
adhered  to  the  Lacedemonians,  and  they  now  de- 
termined, in  a  body,  to  resist  the  measures  of  the 
Athenians.  On  this  occasion  it  is  said  that  Peri- 
cles exclaimed  in  the  Athenian  assembly,  ^'  I 
behold  war  with  wide  and  rapid  steps  advancing 
from  the  Peloponnesus." 

Whilst  both  parties  were  waiting  in  suspense, 
from  what  local  cause  this  momentous  conflict 
would  arise,  the  fatal  blow  was  struck  in  an  un- 
expected quarter. 

The  city  of  Corinth  had  planted  a  colony  in 
the  island  of  Corcyra,  now  called  Corfu.  The 
Corcyrians,  grown  wealthy  and  powerful  by  trade, 
had  adventured  on  a  conflict  with  their  mother 
country  ;  but  the  Corinthians,  proving  more  than 
a  match  for  this  colony,  the  latter  applied  to 
Athens  for  aid.  The  Athenians,  who  were  nearly 
equal  to  all  Greece  in  naval  force,  uniting  with 
the  Corcyrians,  Corinth  was  overpowered,  and 
sent  to  Lacedemon,  as  the  only  source  whence 
effectual  aid  could  be  expected.  The  Lacede- 
monians were  prompt  to  obey  the  call,  consider- 
ing any  cause  just  that  would  humble  their 
haughty  and  powerful  rival. 

Thus  Greece   was   involved    in  a  war  which 
lasted    27   years  :  n«r  <5id   It  cease  to  rage  till 


•        (iREECE«  lis 

Aiiieas,  the  finest  city  of  ancient  tmaes,  was  taken, 
her  walls  and  towers  destroyed,  her  beauty  de- 
faced, and  her  glory  for  ever  tarnished.  Nor  was 
there  a  spot  in  Greece  where  this  relentless  war 
of  passion  did  not  spread  its  flames,  and  exhaust 
its  fury. 

From  the  effects  of  this  disastrous  conflict, 
Greece  never  recovered.  Her  wealth  was  ex- 
hausted ;  her  fairest  cities  ruined  ;  lier  territories 
ravaged  ;  the  spirit  of  her  first  institutions  exter- 
minated— nor  did  she  see  another  moment  of  tran- 
quillity. In  her  history,  after  the  close  of  this 
disastrous  war,  we  see  little  but  intrigue,  treache- 
ry, and  ambition,  ready  to  employ  any  expedi- 
ent. Treaties  made  and  violated  ;  alliances 
formed  and  broken ;  activity  which  resembled 
the  struggles  of  insanity,  and  the  involuntary 
spasms  of  disease. 

Lacedemon,  and  the  states  which  adhered  iij^ 
her  party,  suffered  little  less  than  Athens,  over 
whom  tU^y  triumphed.  Although  the  allied  states 
were  elated  when  Athens  fell,  and  so  mad  was 
their  joy  on  the  day  that  Athens  was  destroyed, 
that  they  ordered  her  walls  to  be  demolished  to 
the  sound  of  martial  music,  and  the  most  extrava- 
gant demonstrations  of  joy,  yet  their  own  ruin 
was  involved. 

The  ashes  of  the  cities  and  villages,  which 
perished  in  the  Peloponnesian  war,  were  scarce- 
ly cold,  when  another  conflict  began,  of  shorter 
continuance,  but  still  more  fierce  and  bloody. 
BcBotia,  a  stale  lying  north  of  the  Peloponnesus, 
which  bad  never  been  of  much  consequence  in 
the  wars  or  counsels  of  Greece,  now  took  its  turn 
to  reign.  Among  this  inconsiderable  people  a 
man  had  risen,  destined  to  eclipse  the  glory  of  all 
tl>e  corwmaiiders  of  the  Grecian  republics^     Th^ 


180  ANCrENT  HISTORV. 

Boeotian  war  now  pointed  its  avenging  columns  at 
the  Peloponnesus,  and  was  aimed  principal]}'  at 
Sparta.  Since  the  fall  of  Athens,  the  Spartan 
commonwealth  had  assumed  a  haughty  attitude, 
and  seemed  to  give  law  to  all  Greece. 

Epaiiiinondas,  with  talents  as  splendid  as  those 
of  Pericles,  was  the  last  virtuous  and  patriotic 
commander  of  those  times.  Roused  by  the  in- 
justice and  folly  of  the  Lacedemonians,  he  assum- 
ed the  reins  of  the  administration  in  Thebes,  and 
with  a  course  of  conduct  to  which  a  stain  of  ambi- 
tion could  not  cleave,  he  appeared  at  the  head  of 
an  army,  determined  to  redress  the  wrongs  of  his 
countrymen.  The  conduct  and  valour  of  Agesi- 
laus,  barely  rescued  the  Lacedemonians  from  the 
fate  of  Athens.  Their  country  was  ravaged, 
their  choicest  troops  slain  in  battle,  and  their  na- 
tional pride  and  loftiness  of  soul  were  brought 
down  and  humbled.  They  were  rendered  weak 
and  impoverished,  but  no  adversity  could  make 
them  wise  ;  nor  could  any  change  restore  the  age 
of  glory  which  was  past. 

BoBotia  rose  and  fell  with  Epaminondas  ;  du- 
ring his  administration  she  was  at  the  head  of 
Greece ;  but  her  importance  was  co-extensive 
only  with  his  life.  The  effects  of  his  greatness, 
however,  proved  one  source  of  the  ruin  of  his 
.country,  and  of  the  utter  destruction  of  Thebes. 
Epaminondas  directed  the  education  of  Philip, 
king  of  Macedon.  That  great  statesman  and 
warrior,  from  the  maxims  and  instructions  of  the 
Theban  general,  formed  plans  of  future  conduct, 
which  rendered  him  the  arbiter  of  Greece.  Philip, 
when  a  youth,  was  sent  as  a  hostage  to  Thebes, 
and  as  he  was  nephew  to  the  king  of  Macedon, 
the  dignity  of  his  rank,  and  still  more  his  amiable 
behaviour,  and  uncommon  talents,  recommended 


GREECE.  181 

him  to  the  patronage  of  Epaminondas,  who  edu- 
cated him  with  his  own  son,  and  bestowed  on  him 
an  ecjual  share  of  his  attention.  The  young  Ma- 
cedonian prince  profited  in  tliis  illustrious  school, 
as  his  subsequent  life  and  fortunes  sufficiently 
evince. 

After  the  comnoencement  of  the  Peloponnesian 
war,  the  history  of  Greece  presents  a  gloomy  pi&- 
lure.  To  the  common  calamities  of  war,  a  civil 
war  adds  the  rage  of  the  most  direful  and  vindic- 
tive passions.  When  friends  become  enemies, 
hatred  is  quickened  by  the  sting  of  ingratitude — 
the  contentions  of  a  brother  are  like  the  bars  of  a 
castle.  No  battle  is  so  dreadful  as  that  where 
friends  and  acquaintance  fill  the  opposing  ranks 
and  conflicting  columns.  The  recollection  of 
former  friendship,  obliterated  by  personal  injury, 
benevolent  affections,  exterminated  by  abuse  and 
insult,  gives  resentment  its  sternest  frown,  bathes 
the  sword  in  poison,  and  renders  death  more 
dreadful. 

When  once  the  alarm  of  war  was  propagated 
by  the  blast  of  civil  discord,  Greece  never  expe- 
rienced another  moment  of  tranquillity.  The  Pe- 
loponnesian and  Boeotian  wars  inflicted  wounds 
that  were  incurable.  Their  demoralizing  effects 
on  the  popular  governments  of  Greece  could  ter- 
minate in  nothing  but  dissolution.  Restless  ambi- 
tion was  perpetually  toiling  for  power,  under  the 
watchword  of  liberty  ;  and  whether  it  was  peace 
or  war,  the  dread  catastrophe  moved  slowly  on, 
urged  by  ten  thousand  hands.  While  power  and 
wealth  boldly  avowed  their  object,  intrigue  plot- 
ted in  darkness,  or  behind  a  mask,  and  the  insult- 
ed confidence  of  the  people,  wherever  it  was 
placed,  was  disappointed. 

Phocion,  the  last  of  the  Athenian  statesmen  of 
iincorrupted  integritv,  was  one  day  debating  witk 
'16  ^  ^ 


182  ANCIENT    HTSTORV. 

Demosthenes  respecting  the  measures  of  Philip., 
when  Demosthenes,  in  a  passion,  cried  out,  ''  Pho- 
oion,  the  Athenians,  in  some  of  their  mad  fits,  will 
one  day  kill  you!"  Phocion  replied,  "Should 
the  Athenians  ever  come  to  their  senses,  they  will 
kill  you."  But  that  they  never  did  ;  nor  could 
any  virtue  of  an  individual  retrieve  their  fall,  or 
procrastinate  their  doom. 

Eight  years  after  the  death  of  Epaminondas^ 
Alexander  the  Great  was  born.  His  father,  Phi- 
lip, one  of  the  most  artful  and  ambitious  princes 
of  antiquity,  had  prepared  the  way  for  the  ag- 
grandizement of  Macedonia.  The  Greeks  had 
grown  so  corrupt,  tumultuary,  and  depraved,  that 
a  master  was  now  rather  a  privilege  than  a  cala- 
mity ;  and  a  master  was  provided  for  them,  who 
fixed  their  wavering  character,  by  the  hand  of 
despotism  and  the  chains  of  a  tyrant. 

No  prince  was  more  nobly  born  than  Alexan- 
der. He  reckoned  Hercules  among  the  ancestors 
of  his  father,  and  his  mother  traced  her  descent 
from  Achilles,  the  Grecian  hero.  From  his  earli- 
est years  Alexander  discovered  an  ardour  of  mind, 
an  elevation  of  genius,  and  solidity  of  judgment, 
which  few  ever  equalled.  When  he  was  yet 
very  young,  he  used  often  to  say,  on  hearing  of 
his  father's  victories,  that  his  father  would  win 
ill  the  victories,  and  leave  nothing  for  him  to  do 
when  he  should  become  a  man. 

He  seemed  to  be  formed  for  equal  vigour  and 
activity,  both  of  body  and  mind.  Pbilonicus,  a 
Thessalian,  brought  a  horse,  of  remarkable  strength 
and  beauty  to  Philip,  which  he  offered  for  13 
talents.  VVhen  they  took  the  horse  into  a  field  to 
try  him,  he  was  found  so  vicious  and  unmanage- 
able, that  Philip  told  his  owner  he  would  not  pur- 
chase him,  and   Philonicu^   was  leading  him  off. 


when  Alexander,  then  quite  a  boy,  who  was  pre- 
sent, was  heard  to  sny,  with   great  vexation  and 
anger,   «'  What  a  horse   they  are  losing  for  the 
want  of  address  and  boldness   to   manage  him  I" 
His  father,  hearing  what  he  said,  asked  him  if  he 
intended  to  reproach  those  who  were  older  than 
himself?  "  Yes,"  said  Alexander,  "  I  can  manage 
this  horse  better  than  any  body  else."      His  fa- 
ther   ordered   him   to   try    the    experiment  ;    on 
which  Alexander,  taking  hold  of  the  bridle,  spake 
gently  to  the  horse,  and,  as  he  was  leading  him 
along,  laid  his  hand  on  the  horse's  mane,  and  drop- 
ping off  his  mantle,  lightly  bomided  on  his  back, 
then  gradually  slackening  the  rein,  he   suffered 
the  horse  to  accelerate  his  movement,  and  he  was 
directly   seen  on   full  speed.      After  a  few  mo- 
ments, when  the  horse  showed  the  disposition  id 
abate  his  swiftness,  Alexander  applied  the  whip, 
and  thus  kept  him  on  speed  till  his  fury  was  tho- 
roughly  abated;     then   returning    to    the    place 
where  the  company  stood  viewing  with  astonish- 
ment the  intrepidity  of  the  young  prince.     When 
he  alighted,  Philip  exclaimed,  with  tears  of  joy, 
says  Plutarch,  «'  O  my  son,  look  thee  out  a  king- 
dom equal  to  thy   great  soul  ;  Macedonia  is  too 
little  for  thee."     This  was  the  famous  horse  Bu- 
cephalus, which  Alexander  rode  in  his  conquest 
of  Persia.     He  died  jn  India,  and  the  conqueror 
built   a  city  on  the    spot  where  he    died,  called 
Bucephalia. 

Ambassadors  from  the  Persian  monarch  cominr 
to  Macedon,  in  the  absence  of  Philip,  Alexander, 
though  quite  a  boy,  conversed  with  them;  asked 
them  the  distance  of  the  Persian  capital  ;  what 
forces  the  king  of  Persia  could  bring  into  the  field  i 
what  the  Persian  government  was  ;  what  was  the 
character  of  the  king  ;  how   he  treated  his  ene 


184  ANCIENT  HISTORV. 

mies  ;  what  were  the  directest  ways  into  Persia. 
Alexander  was  educated  by  Aristotle.  The  mas- 
ter, says  Dr.  Gillies,  was  able  to  govern  the 
minds,  the  scholar  the  bodies,  of  men. 

When  Alexander  was  16  years  old,  Philip,  on 
an  expedition  against  Byzantium,  made  him  his 
lieutenant  in  Macedonia,  and  committed  to  his 
care  his  great  seal,  entrusting  him  with  the  ma- 
nagement of  his  most  important  concerns.  Du- 
ring this  period,  Alexander  marched  against  the 
Medarans,  who  had  revolted,  took  their  city  by- 
storm,  drove  out  the  inhabitants,  put  others  there 
in  their  stead,  and  called  the  city  Alexandrinopo- 
lis.  But  in  the  famous  and  dangerous  battle  of 
Cheronea,  Alexander  first  charged  the  Greeks, 
was  foremost  in  every  danger,  and,  it  is  said,  once 
saved  the  life  of  his  father. 

Notwithstanding  the  ardour  of  this  prince  in 
battle,  and  his  continual  and  rapid  course  of  ac- 
tion, he  was  fond  of  science,  and  was  a  proficient 
in  every  brarch  of  polite  literature.  But  Homer's 
Iliad  was  his  favourite  book  ;  this  he  usually  laid 
under  his  pillow  by  night,  and  often  carried  in 
his  pocket  by  day.  No  prince  was  more  gene- 
rous than  Alexander;  all  the  use  he  seemed  to 
desire  to  make  of  money  was,  to  bestow  it  on  his 
friends,  and  reward  the  services  of  his  soldiers. 

When  Alexander  was  20  years  of  age,  his  father 
died,  and  left  a  kingdom  begirt  with  enemies,  and 
a  throne  environed  with  treachery.  No  youth 
ever  evinced  more  firmness  or  vigour.  Every 
successive  blow  which  he  struck  was  fatal  to  his 
enemies,  and  effectual  to  its  purpose  He  march- 
ed north,  and  quelled  a  rebellion  in  Thrace  and 
lllyria.  He  advanced  to  the  banks  ot'  the  Danube, 
and  awed  the  barbarous  tribes  into  obedience. 
There  a   report   reached  him   that  the   states  of 


i 


GREECE.  185 

Greece  had  revolted,  in  consequence  of  a  report 
of  his  death.  In  eleven  days  he  was  before 
Thebes,  which  city  he  took  by  storm,  and  executed 
the  most  severe  and  awful  vengeance,  putting  a 
part  of  the  inhabitants  to  the  sword,  and  selling 
the  rest  for  slaves 

The  invasion  of  the  Persian  empire  was  now 
to  be  carried  into  effect.  This  was  Alexander's 
grand  object  from  the  time  he  ascended  the  throne, 
and  probably  long  before.  The  Peloponnesian 
states,  awed  by  the  fate  of  Thebes,  had  assembled 
at  the  straits  of  I'hermopylce,  and  declared  their 
resolution  to  assist  him  in  the  Persian  war  ;  and 
Alexander  hastened  thither  to  receive  the  sub- 
missions and  congratulations  of  those  states  who, 
in  the  days  of  Miltiades,  would  have  met  him  in 
hostile  array,  and  received  him  on  the  point  of 
tiieir  spears.  But  now,  "  how  fallen,  how  chang- 
ed I"  They  were  now  fit  for  nothing  but  to  grace 
the  triumph  of  a  conqueror  ;  they  were,  therefore, 
willing  to  do  that  humble  office. 

By  the  time  another  commander  could  have 
made  up  his  mind,  Alexander  was  on  his  march, 
and  he  crossed  the  Hellespont  into  Asia,  before 
another  would  have  got  his  army  in  motion.  He 
entered  the  Persian  territories,  but  found  all  quiet, 
no  army  to  oppose  his  progress,  to  watch  his  mo^ 
tions,  or  to  give  him  battle. 

The  Persian  empire  was  extensive,  and  could 
wealth  and  numbers  have  availed,  Darius  Codo- 
mannus  need  not  have  feared  twenty  such  armies 
as  Alexander's.  For,  had  he  lost  a  million  of  men, 
he  had  a  million  more  to  lose,  and  still  could  have 
outnumbered  Alexander,  twenty  to  one.  Darius,  in 
many  points  of  character,  resembled  Lewis  XVI, 
He  is  represented  as  one  of  the  most  amiable  of 
the  Peraian  monarchs.  But  his  hand  was  not 
16* 


lo6  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

formed  to  hold  the  reins  of  empire  with  steadi- 
ness, strength,  and  dignity.  He  knew  how  to 
basii  in  the  splendours  of  a  court,  but  was  utterly 
unqualified  to  repel  the  dangers,  or  direct  the 
operations,  of  the  fields  of  war. 

The  ct  lebrated  Memnon,  the  Rhodian,  was  the 
only  commander  whose  skill  and  valour  Alexan- 
der respected  ;  and  had  his  advice  been  strictly 
followed,  the  Greeks  might  have  been  repelled 
with  ease.  Memnon  advised  not  to  fight  with 
Alexander,  but  to  retreat  before  him,  and  remove 
as  much  as  possible  all  subsistence  for  his  array, 
by  laying  waste  the  country,  and  merely  harass- 
ing him  by  flying  parties.  But  such  measures 
were  thought  unworthy  a  nation  containing  40  mil- 
lions of  people.  And  Memnon  himselr  dying 
soon  after,  Alexander  was  freed  from  any  appre- 
hension of  danger  from  that  quarter. 

The  grand  monarch  even  disdained  the  idea 
of  fighting  with  an  enemy  so  contemptible,  but  or- 
dered his  satraps  to  seize  the  mad  boy,  and  bring 
hiio  bound  to  Suza,  and  to  transport  all  the  Ma- 
cedonians to  the  farther  shore  of  the  Red  Sea. 
On  the  banks  of  the  river  Granicus  a  Persian 
arm.y  was  ready  to  execute  the  order  of  Darius. 
But  they  found  the  mad  boy  not  easily  bound. 
Here  the  astoni^-^ht'd  Persians  beheld  a  scene,  of 
which  they  never  before  Ijad  any  conception. 

The  river  was  deep  and  rapid,  its  channel 
rocky,  its  opposite  banks  covered  with  a  hostile 
army.  These  appearances  could  not  intimidate 
the  youthful  warrior.  His  cavalry  entered  the 
river,  followed  by  the  Macedonian  phalanx.  Him- 
self commanded  the  right,  and  Farmenio  the  left. 
They  passed  unbroken  through  the  rapid  stream, 
under  showers  of  darts  and  arrows,  and  every 
form  of  missile  weapons.     As  they  ascended  the 


aREECEf  IBl 

opposite  bank  they  closed  with  the   Persian  line, 
and  the  conflict  was  furious  and  bloody. 

Nothing  could  stand  before  such  intrepidity 
and  valour:  the  Persians  fell  in  multitudes,  and 
none  escaped  but  by  flight.  This  brilliantvicto- 
ry  inflamed  the  courage  of  the  conquerors,  and 
spread  consternation  through  Persia. 

The  news  of  this  disaster  reached  Darius  at 
Babylon,  who,  contrary  to  the  advice  of  his  wisest 
counsellors,  immediately  determined  to  march  in 
quest  of  the  enemy.  Alexander  visited  the  prin- 
cipal cities  along  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor.  But 
no  memorable  event  occurred  previous  to  the  bat- 
tle of  Issus,  some  brief  details  of  which  were  giv- 
en in  the  lecture  on  Persia. 

At  Issus  and  Arbela  the  two  decisive  battles 
were  fought,  and  the  melancholy  fate  of  Darius, 
who  was  destined  to  fall  by  the  hand  of  an  as- 
sassin, has  been  already  noticed  in  a  former  lec- 
ture. It  is  not  easy  to  say  why  mankind  have  so 
readily  and  generally  allowed  Alexander  the  first 
place  among  heroes  and  conquerors  ;  unless  it  be 
owing  to  Grecian  eloquence,  which  forms  the 
ground  in  which  the  diamond  is  set.  If  the  great- 
ness of  a  man's  achievements  is  measured  by  the 
greatness  of  the  impediments  he  overcomes,  cer- 
tainly what  Hannibal  did  in  Italy  was  incompa- 
rably more  arduous  than  what  Alexander  did  in 
Persia  or  India.  Consider  the  Roman  armies, 
which  Hannibal  defeated — even  Marcellus  and 
Fabius  cuuld  not  stand  before  him.  He  did  not,  in- 
deed, conquer  Rome,  but  that  was  the  fault  of 
Carthage,  iiis  army  was  not  adequate  to  the  re- 
duction of  Rome.  No  talents  in  a  commander 
can  countervail  the  want  of  an  army. 

Neither  can  the  military  exploits  of  Alexander 
compare  with  those  of  Julius  Csesar,  which   FIh- 


188  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

tarch  clearly  shows  in  his  comparison  of  there 
two  great  commanders,  notwithstanding  his  great 
and  evident  partiality  for  the  Greeks.  But  this 
we  shall  more  fully  consider  in  a  future  lecture, 
when  we  speak  of  the  actions  of  Julius  Caesar. 

From  the  conquest  of  Persia,  Alexander  pro- 
ceeded eastward,  and  crossed  the  river  Indvis  to- 
wards India.  In  this  immense  excursion  he  had  an 
abundance  of  skirmishing,  and  some  considerable 
battles,  which,  nuthnit;  ou-  their  distance  (nun 
home  gives  them  any  exiraoidinary  claim  to  ad- 
miration His  taking  the  rock  Ornus,  deserves  the 
name  of  a  bold  adventure,  rather  than  a  iiii- 
litary  operation.  A  fortress,  on  the  top  of  a  rock, 
deeined  inaccessible  in  every  place  but  one,  was 
held  by  a  strong  garrison,  'i'he  ascent  to  tliis 
fortress  was  so  narrow,  that  but  one  person  could 
go  up  at  a  time.  It  is  said  that  neither  Hercules 
nor  Bacchus  could  take  this  strong  hold,  and  from 
time  immemorial  it  had  been  considered  as  im- 
pregnable. Alexander,  in  careTully  reconnoiter- 
ing,  discovered  a  place  where  he  thought  it  might 
'be  ascended  in  a  different  direction. 

In  the  night,  therefore,  whilst  he  was  making  fi 
feint  to  attack  the  rock  in  the  usual  ascent,  a  par- 
ty of  his  men,  headed  by  Ptolemy,  afterwards-, 
king  of  Egypt,  succeeded  in  climbing  the  rock  orv 
the  opposite  side;  and  whilst  the  men  in  the  for- 
tress were  guarding  the  common  ascent,  and  look- 
ing earnestly  that  way,  they  were  suddenly  at- 
tacked iVom  behind,  and  perceived  a  body  of 
the  Greeks  in  the  fortress,  'i'hey  were  amazed, 
and  concluded  that  they  must  be  something  more 
than  human,  threw  dovvh  their  arms,  and  surren- 
dered without  striking  a  blow. 

Alexander's  war  with  Porus,  king  of  India,  was 
!*urelv  not  wanting  either  in  courage  or  conduct. 


GREECE.  l^B 

but  it  was  indeed  inconsiderable,  and  had  it  been 
on  the  borders  of  Greece,  would  scarcely  have 
been  noticed  by  historians.  Porus  had  about, 
20,000  men. 

Yet  wiien  the  whole  line  of  Alexander's  opera- 
tion is  considered,  it  appears  grand  and  noble,  if 
such  a  destroyer  of  the  species  can  be  justly  term- 
ed noble  ;  the  various  extremes  of  danger  he  pas- 
sed through  gives  a  sublime  idea  of  protecting 
Providence.  The  ancients  called  it  good  fortune , 
and  Cicero  places  it  among  the  four  chief  quali- 
ties of  the  great  commander.  The  most  difficult 
of  Alexander's  achievements  was  the  reconciling 
the  Macedonians  to  his  plans  of  ambition  ;  and 
especially  settling  the  quarrels,  and  obliterating 
the  resentments,  raised  against  him  in  his  fits  of 
drunkenness  and  ungovernable  passion  ;  which, 
after  the  reduction  of  Persia,  grew  frequent  and 
troublesome. 

The  four  most  amiable  characters  and  greatest 
men  in  his  army  he  murdered  with  the  most  wan- 
ton cruelty.  Clitus,  a  brave  and  faithful  officer, 
who  saved  the  life  of  Alexander  at  the  battle  of 
Granicus  ;  Parmenio,  to  whose  valour  and  con- 
duct he  owed  perhaps  more  than  to  his  own,  he 
barbarously  murdered,  because  he  had,  on  bare 
suspicion,  murdered  his  son  Philotas,  one  of  his 
noblest  and  most  active  officers.  But  perhaps  the 
most  wicked  and  atrocious  of  his  murders  was 
that  of  Calisthenes,  the  philosopher,  merely  be- 
cause he  would  not  be  guilty  of  the  baseness  and 
impiety  of  paying  him  divine  honours,  and  ac- 
knowledging him  to  be  a  god. 

On  Alexander's  return  from  India  he  arrived  at 
Babylon,  and  was  making  preparations  to  repair 
that  city,  and  restore  it  to  its  ancient  splendour; 
but  a  mightier  hand  than  his  had  prepared  other 


IdO  ANCIE.NT    HISTORY- 

work  for  him.  Every  ray  of  his  former  virtueb., 
all  his  amiable  traits  of  character,  had  forsaken 
him,  and  he  had  become  a  formidable  object  of 
ffride,  dissipation,  cruelty,  and  rage.  When  Ke- 
phsestion,  one  of  his  favourite  officers,  died,  he  in- 
vaded a  province,  and  murdered  all  the  inhabitants 
as  a  sacrifice  to  appease  his  departed  shade,  and 
to  honour  his  memory. 

Jn  the  midst  of  this  enormous  course  of  v/ick- 
edness,  he  was  seized  with  a  fever,  brought  on  by 
intemperance,  and  died  suddenly  at  Babylon. 
With  him  ceased  the  movements  of  that  great 
machine  of  power  and  influence  which  his  ener- 
gies had  put  in  motion.  His  empire  soon  became, 
in  a  measure,  quiescent  under  four  great  divisions^ 
which  were  seized  by  four  of  his  principal  offi- 
cers. Cassander  shared  Macedon  and  Greece  ; 
Lysimachus,  Thrace,  and  the  countries  about  the 
Hellespont;  Ptolemy  had  Egypt.  Lybia,  Arabia, 
Syria,  and  Palestine  ;  and  Seleucus,  Chaldea, 
Persia,  and  the  East. 

Alexander  perished  in  the  32d  year  of  his  age, 
and  12th  of  his  reign.  He  seemed  naturally  to 
possess  many  amiable  traits  of  character  ;  but 
these  were  overrun  and  obscured  by  his  ambition. 
But  even  his  ambition  itself,  and  every  other  ra- 
tional endowment,  was  so  crushed  and  trampled 
down  beneath  the  frantic  fury  of  his  passions, 
that  no  confidence  could  be  placed  in  him,  and 
there  was  no  safety  near  him.  The  whole  of  his 
power  and  wealth  were  employed  in  the  perpe- 
tration of  crimes  too  atrocious  and  horrid  for 
conception.  A  man,  to  gain  his  favour,  must 
abandon  all  claim  to  manhood — must  be  a  slave, 
a  brute,  a  monster,  like  the  tyrant  he  basely 
adored  as  a  god. 

The  prosperity  of  Alexander's  arms,  and  th& 


GREECE.  151 

?^access  of  his  enterprises,  have  spread  a  lustre 
over  his  vices,  and  shielded  him  from  universal 
abhorrence.  But  let  his  character  be  stripped  of 
that  false  and  gaudj  splendour,  and  viewed  in  its 
true  light,  and  he  must  appear  one  of  the  most  ex- 
ecrable of  all  the  human  race.  The  midnight 
robber  and  murderer  is  often  impelled  by  hunger 
and  by  want  ;  he  enters  the  house  of  a  stranger, 
and  violates  no  tie  of  gratitude;  a  train  of  cir- 
cumstances render  it  at  least  probable,  that  Alex- 
ander began  his  career  of  blood  by  the  murder  of 
his  father.  His  life  was  a  scene  of  bloodshed  ; 
and,  for  the  most  part,  the  blood  of  those  that  had 
never  done  him  an  injury.  That  by  the  consent 
©fall  polite  nations  this  man  should  stand  first  on 
the  list  of  honourable  fame,  where  he  certainly  does 
stand,  is  reproachful  to  the  human  character — is  a 
disgrace  to  mankind. 

**  One  murder  makes  a  villain,  millions  a  hero." 

Under  the  successors  of  Alexander  the  Greda 
states  rapidly  declined.  Their  military  and  po= 
litical  importance  vanished  away  ;  yet  still,  in  the 
Augustan  age,  Athens  was  respected  as  a  venera- 
ble school  of  science  ;  though  even  then  the  day 
of  poetry  and  eloquence  was  long  past.  Those 
noble  arts  never  reside  with  a  base,  degenerate 
people. 

The  aera  of  Grecian  glory  was  in  the  days  of 
Themistocles  and  Aristides.  Her  most  splendid 
period  was  under  the  administrations  of  Cimon 
and  Pericles  ;  and  the  foundation  of  her  ruin  was 
effectually  laid  in  the  Peloponnesian  war,  and  by 
the  men  who  were  the  authors  of  that  war.  The 
height  of  prosperity  has  proved  the  brink  of  ruin 
t<9  manv  natioas. 


i9|  ANCIENT  HISTOnv. 

With  sublime  and  mournful  pleasure,  we  con- 
template the  rise  and  fall  of  nations.  It  is  a  me- 
lancholy reflection,  that,  in  every  age,  they  have 
laboured  with  more  assiduity,  expense,  and  vigour, 
to  ruin  and  destroy,  than  to  establish  and  build 
up.  The  art  of  war  has  taken  the  lead  of  every 
other  art  and  science,  and  has  been  the  grand  ob- 
ject of  nations.  But  in  considering  the  fall  of 
nations,  the  chief  thing  to  be  deplored  is,  not 
that  they  have  laboured  to  destroy  one  another, 
but  that  they  have  ruined  and  destroyed  them- 
selves. The  enormous  vices  and  infatuated  po- 
licy of  all  the  ancient  nations,  was  the  source  of 
their  destruction.  But  for  this,  the  states  of 
Greece  might  have  flourished  till  this  day.  The 
ruin  of  every  nation  may  be  charged  to  the  am- 
bition of  men  who  prefer  their  own  interest  to  the 
public  good  ;  who  seek  their  own  aggrandize 
jnent  in  the  ruin  and  misery  of  millions. 


Lb- 


193 


f/CCTURE  IX. 


Carthasre. 

o 

'•  The  great  object  of  travelling,"  says  Dr. 
Johnson,  "  is  to  visit  ti]e  shores  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean." Here  all  the  great  empires, whose  his- 
tories to  us  form  the  most  interesting  sources  of 
inquiry,  were  born,  flourished,  and  died.  Here 
the  arts  and  sciences  have  been  carried  to  their 
utmost  height.  Here  the  mind,  in  its  most  im- 
proved state,  has  made  the  greatest  excursions 
into  philosophy,  religion,  and  politics.  Upon 
these  shores  are  yet  crumbling  many  monuments, 
once  the  witnesses  of  illustrious  deeds,  but  now 
the  melancholy  trophies  of  all-subduing  lime,  they 
"  whisper  the  last  echoeij  of  the  world's  ap- 
plause." Egypt,  Assyria,  Persia,  and  Greece, 
have  successively  past  in  review.  But  before  we 
visit  Rome,  we  must  again  cross  the  Mediterra- 
nean, to  contemplate,  for  a  short  time,  the  second 
and  last  great  empire  that  Africa  produced,  viz., 
Carthage.  We  are  principally  induced  to  this, 
in  order  to  give  a  narrative  of  those  wars  which 
preceded  its  fall,  and  which  determined  the  em- 
pire of  the  world,  as  also  to  contemplate  one  of 
the  greatest  generals  of  ancient  times. 

The  city  of  Carthage  stood  upon  a  peninsula 
projecting  into  an  arm  of  the  Mediterranean, 
about  50  miles  in  circumference.  The  isthmus 
connecting  it  with  the  continent  of  Africa,  was 
between  three  and  four  miles  over,  and  secure i^ 
17 


jj94  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

by  a  wall.  Its  harbours  were  good,  and  proiect- 
ed  by  double  walls,  affording  a  secure  position  in 
time  of  war,  and  an  excellent  emporium  in  time 
ol'  pe»ce. 

Although  the  territories  of  Carthage,  in  the 
early  ages  of  that  empire,  were  comparatively 
small,  yet-,  in  the  times  of  the  Punic  wars,  they 
were  very  extensive  ;  comprehending  almost  all 
tie  northern  section  of  the  African  pyramid,  the 
greater  part  of  Spain,  the  islands  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean, Majorca,  Minorca,  Ivica,  and  the  princi- 
pal part  of  Sicily.  This  vast  territory  embraced 
numerous  powerful  nations,  and  populous  cities, 
among  which  Carthage  stood  first,  containing 
700,009  inhabitants.  Lying  wholly  within  the 
temperate,  zone,  their  climate  was  unexception- 
able ;  to  which,  if  we  add  a  soil  whose  fertility 
ivas,  perlsaps,  never  excelled,  it  will  not  be  sur- 
prisiijg  thai  tliey  so  long  maintained  an  ascen- 
dancy among  the  nations  then  llourishing. 

Various  are  the  opinions  respecting  the  ssra  of 
the  fcirudation  of  Carthage.  They  may  all,  how- 
ever, be  reduced  to  two.  The  tiiot  is,  that  Car- 
Ihsce  was  founded  by  a  colony  v.liich  fled  from 
Canaan  in  the  time  of  Joshua,  B.  C.  1316.  The 
other  opinion  is,  that  it  was  founded  by  Elisa,  or 
Dido,  who  fled  with  a  colony  from  Tyre,  to  avoid 
the  avaricious  Pvgmaiion,  her  broihcr,  king  of 
that  city,  B.  C.  889. 

The  truth  seems  to  be  tins:  During  the 
ionquest  of  Canaan,  many  of  the  iiihabitants  of 
that  country,  in  separate  companies,  fled  to 
-'Uffcrent  pads,  and  planted  colonies  in  Asia 
Muior,  and  along  the  northern  and  southern 
chores  of  the  Rlediterranean  sea.  Several  of 
-;he£e  colonies  in  after  ages  grew  into  powerful 
■tales,  while  others,  mingling  with  the  inhabitantr, 


CARTHAaE.  i05 

among  whom  they  settled,  were  insensibly  lost. 
We  find  Lacedemon,  in  particular,  as  has  been 
noticed,  claiming  an  affinity  with  the  Jevv:^,  and 
deducing;  tiieir  original  from  the  ancient  inhabit- 
ants of  Palestine  In  like  manner,  Carthage, 
according  to  universal  opinion,  was  founded  by 
a  company  of  Canaanites,  probably  during  the 
numerous  emigrations  which  took  place  in  the 
time  of  Joshua.  For  nearly  600  years,  however, 
it  remained  very  insignificant,  and  almost  of 
dubious  existence,  when  a  circumstance  occurred 
at  Tyre,  which  was  followed  by  a  short  emer- 
gence of  Carthage  from  obscurity.  Pygmalion, 
a  prince  distinguished  for  his  unbounded  avarice 
and  cruelty,  tyrannized  over  the  city  of  Tyre« 
He  murdered  Sicharbas,  or  Sicheeus,  the  husband 
of  his  sister  Dido,  designing  to  possess  himself  of 
his  great  riches.  But  Dido,  obtaining  permission 
to  visit  a  southern  part  of  Phoenicia,  secretly 
conveyed  the  wealth  of  her  husband  on  board  of 
a  few  vessels,  and  being  joined  by  many  persons, 
whom  the  fear  of  the  tyrant,  the  friendship  of 
Dido,  or  the  prevalent  spirit  of  adventure  had 
allured,  set  sail  for  the  coast  of  Africa,  and 
landed  at  Carthage,  in  all  probability  by  design, 
where  the  old  colony  had  been  settled  for  several 
hundred  years. 

The  rank  of  Dido,  her  immense  wealth,  and 
surpassing  genius,  immediately  gave  her  so  far 
the  ascendancy,  that  she  was  placed  at  the  head 
of  the  colony.  The  city  was  considerably  en- 
larged, its  name  changed,  and  its  commerce  ex- 
tended ;  which  circumstances,  together  with  the 
colouring  afforded  by  Virgil,  have  led  succeeding 
ages  to  attribute  the  origin  of  Carthage  to  Dido, 
500  years  later  than  the  circumstances  of  their 
history  will  allow. 


196  ANCIENT    HISTOILV. 

We  ought  here,  perhaps,  to  notice  the  attempt 
of  Sir  Isaac  Newton  to  reconcile  the  anachro- 
nism  of  Virgil,  and  make  i^'.neas,  the  Trojan 
prince,  and  Dido,  cotemporary.  But  we  have 
only  space  to  observe,  that  the  most  approved 
chronologers  treat  that  story  as  a  poetical  fiction , 
designed  rather  as  an  interesting  adventure  to 
heighten  the  dignity  of  the  poem,  than  as  an 
historical  allusion,  to  transmit  the  memory  of  a 
fact.  Dido  lived  270  years  after  the  Trojan 
Vv^ar. 

We  shall  consider  the  history  of  Carthage 
under  the  several  periods  into  which  it  naturally 
divides  itself  Carthage  was  destroyed  B.  C. 
143.  Ii\  Therefore,  we  date  its  commencement 
from  the  conquest  of  Canaan  by  Joshua,  B.  C. 
1316,  its  duration  will  be  1173  years.  But  if 
from  the  reign  of  Dido,  B.  C.  889,  it  will 
amount  to  but  746  years  ;  and  this  is  the  period 
usually  allotted  by  historians. 

I.  The  first  division  extends  from  the  accession 
of  Dido,  B.  C.  889,  to  the  year  B.  C.  412, 
containing  477  years.  The  knowledge  we  have 
of  the  events  of  this  period  consists  rather  in 
scattered  hints  than  a  connected  series  of  facts. 
We  shall  notice  some  of  them.  The  fame  of  the 
emigration,  settlement,  riches,  and  beauty  of 
Dido,  soon  spread  into  the  neighbouring  territories 
of  Africa,  and  excited  in  many  princes  an  ambition 
to  obtain  her  hand  in  marriage.  Among  the  rest, 
larbas,  the  most  powerful  monarch  of  that 
country,  preferred  his  claim  to  this  honour,  by  a 
solemn  embassy  to  Dido.  Knowing  his  power  to 
extirpate  by  the  edge  of  the  sword  her  diminutive, 
but  llourisiiing  state.  Dido  evaded  his  request  for 
a  short  time  ;  tiil,  finding  no  means  of  avoiding 
his  claim,  she  ordered  a  pile   to  be-  erected  in 


CXRTHAGE.  197 

the  middle  of  the  city,  upon  pretence  of  sacrifi- 
cing  to  tiie  manes  of  her  murdered  husband. 
Whether  she  would  not  violate  an  oalh  she  had 
made,  or  feigned  to  have  made,  never  again  to 
marry,  or  whether  she  did  not  relish  the  idea  of 
a  matrimonial  state  with  her  barbarous  and 
tawny  neighbour,  is  not  known  ;  but  when  the 
pile  was  already  kindling  into  flame,  she  sud- 
denly ascended  it,  and  drawing  a  concealed 
poniard  from  her  vest,  she  plunged  it  into  her 
bosom,  and  expired,  leaving  to  her  friends  a 
grateful  memorial  of  her  virtues,  and  to  pos- 
terity the  illustrious  title  of  the  founder  of 
Carthaginian  greatness. 

For  upwards  of  300  years  posterior  to  the 
death  of  Dido,  history  is  almost  void  of  any 
notice  of  Carthage.  Their  government  appears 
to  have  been  fluctuating,  their  commerce  ex- 
tending, their  wealth  and  power  rapidly  accumu- 
lating. Foreign  wars  began  to  engage  their  at- 
tention, and  tiie  reigns  of  Cyrus  and  Cambyses 
were  distinguished  by  many  examples  of  Cartha- 
ginian prowess. 

The  close  of  the  period  under  consideration  is 
marked  with  several  circumstances  of  considera- 
ble importance.  Since  the  commencement  of 
their  state,  the  Carthaginians  had  been  tributary 
to  their  more  powerful  African  neighbours.  Con- 
siderable conquests  had  been  made  in  Sicilj  and 
Spain,  before  they  were  able  to  free  themselves 
from  this  odious  yoke.  Unsuccessful  attempts 
had,  from  time  to  time,  been  made,  till,  at  length, 
with  a  determined  eftbrt,  they  conquered  the 
Numidians,  Mauritaniajis,  and  various  other 
nations,  and  rendered  themselves  masters  of  a 
great  territory,  unincumbered  with  exactions. 

During  this   struggle    a    remarkable    circum- 
17^ 


198  ANCIENT  HISTOllY. 

stance  occurred.  A  contention  arose  between 
Carthage  and  Cyrene,  a  neighbouring  city, 
respecting  the  boundary  ot"  their  territories.  It 
was  determined  tliat  two  persons  from  each  city 
should  start  at  the  same  time,  and  that  wherever 
they  met,  there  should  be  the  boundary.  Two 
Carthaginian  brothers,  called  Phikeni,  according- 
ly started,  and  met  the  Cyrenians  a  considera- 
ble distance  beyond  the  disputed  boundary. 
The  Cyrenians,  pretending  that  they  had  been 
deceived,  refused  ix)  submit,  unless  the  Philoeni 
should  consent  to  be  buried  alive  on  the  spot. 
They  willingly  oflPered  themselves  a  sacrifice  foi 
their  countrymen,  and  were  entombed  without 
delay.  Patriotism  more  unshaken  cannot  be 
conceived,  much  less  practised. 

It  is  not  known  when  the  Carthaginians  first 
obtained  looting  in  Spam.  It  must  have  been 
very  early,  however,  since,  in  their  first  con- 
quests of  any  importance,  their  vast  armies  were 
principally  recruited,  and  their  treasury  re- 
plenished, from  that  country.  The  inhabitants  of 
Spain  were  a  hardy,  warlike  race,  and  their 
mines  afforded  an  abundant  supply  of  gold  and 
silver  to  maintain  them  as  auxiliaries  in  fighting 
the  battles  of  Carthage.  But  a  small  part  of 
Spain  was  under  the  power  of  Carthage  till  the 
time  of  the  second  Punic  war.  It  remained  for 
Hannibal  to  open  a  passage  to  the  Pyrenees — to 
the  Alps — to  the  plains  of  Italy.  The  islands 
of  Malta  and  the  Baleares,  or,  as  they  are  now 
called,  Majorca,  Minorca,  and  Ivica,  early  fell 
into  their  handa,  and  furnished  an  excellent  re« 
source  for  auxiliary  soldiers. 

Carthage  had  lor  many  years  been  attempting 
to  obtain  a  permanent  looting  in   Sicily,  when 


CARTHAGE.  ] 99 

Xerxes  the  Great  projected  his  famed  expedition 
into  Greece.  The  Carthaginians  promised  to  in- 
vade the  Grecian  colonies  of  Sicily  on  his  be- 
half, but  rather  to  gratify  their  own  ambition. 
After  three  years'  preparation,  an  army  of  SOU, 000 
men,  composed  of  Africans,  Spaniards,'Baleare&ns, 
Gauls,  and  Ligurians,  under  the  command  of  Ha- 
tnilcar,  embarked  for  Sicily.  They  landed,  and 
formed  the  siege  of  Hymera.  But  Gelon,  tyranf 
of  Syracuse,  falling  suddenly  upon  them,  totally 
defeated  them.  Those  not  killed  were  gene*- 
rally  taken  prisoners,  and  sold  for  slaves.  Ha- 
milcar,  seeing  all  was  lost,  threw  himself  into  the 
flames,  after  having  in  vain  sacriliced  many  hu- 
man victims  to  Saturn,  the  great  god  of  the  Car- 
thaginians. Terrified  by  this  unexpected  stroke, 
the  Carthaginians  sued  for  peace,  which  Geloa 
granted  on  reasc^iable  terms.  One  article  of  this 
treaty  is  remarkable.  They  w^ere  directed  to 
"abstain  from  human  sacrifices;"  a  barbarous 
custom  they  had  received  from  their  ancestors, 
the  Pha'nicians,  and  which  they  ever  retained. 

II.  The  second  division  of  this  history  extends 
from  B.  C.  412,  to  the  commencement  of  the  first 
Punic  war,  B.  C.  275,  containing  137  years. 
This  period  passed  away  in  wars  with  the  Syra- 
cusans,  who  were  at  this  time  at  the  hei^^ht  of 
their  power,  and  who  were  led  by  commanderF 
whose  names  are  distinguished  upon  the  rolls  of 
fame.  Such  were  Dionysius,  the  elder  and 
younger,  Timoleon,  and  Agathocles.  The  Car- 
thaginians, recovering  from  the  blow  they  had  re- 
ceived from  Gelon,  broke  the  treaty,  and  renewed 
the  war  in  Sicily.  Hannibal,  the  son  of  Cisco, 
was  sent  over  with  a  large  army,  who  took  the 
ancient  city  of  Selinus,  massacred  16^000  of  the 
wretched  inhabitants  in  the  most  barterous  msm- 


200  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

ner,  and  sold  the  rest  as  slaves  into  Africa.  Ad- 
vancing to  the  siege  of  Agrigentum,  he,  together 
with  most  of  his  army,  was  swept  off  by  the 
plague  ;  a  fit  recompense  for  his  unprovoked  cru- 
elties. Imilcar,  who  succeeded,  was  soon  after 
obliged  to  sue  for  peace,  which  was  readily 
granted  by  Dionysius,  who  had  just  usurped  the 
government  of  Syracuse,  and  wished  for  an  op- 
portunity to  settle  himself  on  the  throne. 

As  soon  as  Dionysius  found  himself  in  a  situa- 
tion to  prosecute  the  war,  he  made  a  sudden 
irruption  into  the  Carthaginian  territories,  laying 
waste  every  thing  with  tire  and  sword.  But 
having  lost  his  fleet,  and  being  repulsed  in  seve- 
ral engagements,  he  was  forced  to  retire  and  shut 
himself  up  in  the  harbour  of  Syracuse,  which  was 
closely  besieged  by  Imilcon,  the  Carthaginian 
general.  Crowned  with  the  most  flattering  suc- 
cess, and  already  master  of  almost  all  Sicily,  Imil- 
con congratulated  himself  with  the  idea  of  closing 
tiiis  long  and  bloody  war  by  the  reduction  of  Sy- 
racuse, the  proud  capital  of  Sicily.  But  his  ex- 
pectations were  suddenly  blasted  ;  a  terrible 
plague  broke  out  among  the  soldiers,  which  thin- 
ned their  ranks,  and  damped  their  courage  to  such 
a  degree,  that  Dionysius,  by  a  vigorous  sally,  en- 
tirely defeated  them,  iniilcoi}  begged  and  ob- 
tained the  liberty  of  returning  to  Carthage  with 
the  remainder  of  his  shattered  army.  Upon  his 
arrival,  declaring  his  intention  not  to  survive  his 
fall,  or  rather  dreading  the  rage  of  his  dismayed 
countrymen,  who  always  made  it  a  point  to  sacri- 
fice to  their  gods  an  unsuccessful  general,  he  de- 
voted himself  to  a  voluntary  death,  and  plunged 
his  dagger  into  his  bosom. 

This  calamity  was  followed  by  another,  which, 
fur  a  '.vhile,  seemed  more  alarming  and  dangerous 


CARTOAGL.  201 

io  their  city.  The  Africans,  always  cherishing 
a  secret  hatred  and  jealousy  towards  the  Cartha- 
ginians, suddenly  broke  into  a  general  revolt,  be- 
ing filled  with  rage,  because  Imilcon  had  left 
their  countrymen  exposed  to  all  the  fury  of  the 
victorious  Dionysius.  They  collected  in  immense 
multitudes  and  marched  to  the  gates  of  the  city. 
But,  happily  for  Carthage,  they  were  headed  by 
no  general  capable  of  extensive  enterprise,  or 
steady  views  Venting  their  rage  for  some  time 
against  the  naked  walls,  and  beginning  to  suffer 
for  provisions,  they  gradually  dispersed. 

After  some  more  fruitless  campaigns  on  both 
sides,  the  Carthaginians  concluded  another  treaty 
with  the  Syracusans,  B.  C.  382. 

JNot  satisfied,  however,  with  the  advantages 
which  were  possessed  on  either  side,  the  treaty 
was  again  broken  under  Dionysius  II.,  a  mildand 
generous  prince,  who  had  succeeded  his  father  on 
the  throne  of  Syracuse.  The  commencement  of 
this  war  was  marked  by  a  singular  circumstance, 
which  affords  a  strong  reason  why  so  little  of  the 
Carthaginian  history  has  been  transmitted  to  us. 
On  account  of  a  treasonable  correspondence  which 
was  carried  on  by  a  Carthaginian  with  Dionysius^ 
the  Greek  language  was,  by  a  lav/  of  the  senate 
of  Carthage,  universally  prohibited.  The  Gre- 
cian literature,  which  was  spreading  wide  as  Gre- 
cian fame  extended,  was  thus,  by  a  public  act, 
for  ever  excluded  the  walls  of  Carthage.  It  serves 
strongly  to  mark  that  narrow  and  calculating  spi- 
rit, for  which  they  were  notorious.  It  breathes 
not  that  high  sentiment,  and  generous  feelings 
which  rendered  the  Greeks  the  pride  of  the  an- 
cient world 

Frora  this  time  till  the  year  B.  C.  338,  a  blood}" 
'var  was  waged  with  the  Syracusans  and  Corin- 


202  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

thians,  under  the  celebrated  Timoleon,  with  il* 
success  on  the  part  of  the  Carthaginians.  At 
length  they  were  constrained  to  treat  with  Ti- 
moleon  upon  humiliating  terms. 

In  the  year  B.  C.  316,  Agathocles  was  chosen 
general  of  the  Syracusan  army.       An  ambitious, 
bold,  and  enterprising  man,  he  soon  found  means 
to  place  the  crown  upon  his  head      He  suddenly 
broke  into  the  Carthaginian  territories  in  Sicily, 
and  with  sweeping  devastation  made  himself  mas- 
ter of  many  populous  cities,  till  his  progress  was 
stopped  by  a  Carthaginian  army  before  Agrigen- 
tum.     A  general  battle  was  at  length  fought,  and 
the   plains  of  Hymera    were  covered  with    the 
slain.     Agathocles  was  obliged  to  retire  and  shut 
himself  in   the  fortress  of  Syracuse,  whither  Ha- 
milcar  pursued  him.     While  Hamilcar  was  ciosely 
pressing  the  siege,   Agathocles  conceived  a  plan 
which  proved  at  once  that  he  was  a  consummate 
general.     Although  possessing  but  one  city  in  the 
whole  island  of  Sicily,   and  tha*t  one  closely   be- 
sieged by   a  powerful   army,    he   determinea   to 
change  the  seat  of  the  war  from  Syracuse  to  Car- 
thage.    Having  collected  a  small  sum  of  money, 
sufficient  only  to  defray  his  present  expenses,  he 
embarked  a  small  army  of  14,C00  men   in  a  few 
vessels,  broke  through  the  Carthaginian  fleet,  and 
landed  in  Africa.      In  order  to  preclude  all  hope 
of  retreat,    and   more  effectually   to   prepare  his 
soldiers  for  his  desperate  plan,  he  seized  a  torch, 
and  set  fire  to  his  ship,  exhorting  them  to  do  the 
same.     Fired  with  enthusiasm,  they  followed  his 
example,   and   in  a  few   hours  the   fleet   was  no 
more.     A  more  daring  adventure  is  not  recorded 
in  the  annals  of  history.     A  coward  will  fight  like 
a  hero  when  he  cannot  fly. 

Ifnwilling  to  give  his  army  time  to  reflect  on 


CARTHAGE.  203 

what  they  had  done,  Agathocles  marched  directly 
towards  Carthage,  spreading  terror  and  dismay 
through  all  the  territory.  The  Carthaginians, 
supposing  that  their  army  was  utterly  lost,  aban- 
doned themselves  to  despair,  and  acted  as  if  Aga- 
thocles was  already  master  of  the  city.  In  a  few 
days,  however,  finding  that  all  things  in  Sicily 
were  safe,  they  resumed  their  courage,  and  pre- 
pared to  meet  the  Syracusans  in  the  open  field. 
An  army,  vastly  superior  to  that  of  Agathocles, 
commanded  by  Hanno  and  Bomilcar,  met  him, 
and  might  have  obtained  an  easy  victory,  if  ihey 
had  contended  with  a  general  whose  talents  were 
on  a  level  with  their  own.  But,  by  a  skilful  dis- 
position of  his  forces,  as  well  as  by  taking  ad- 
vantage of  their  superstitious  feelings  to  favour 
his  cause,  Agathocles  obtained  a  complete  victory. 
The  Carthaginians  attributed  their  defeat  to  the 
anger  of  Saturn,  because  they  had  sacrificed  to 
him  children  of  poor  and  obscure  parents,  instead 
of  those  nobly  born.  Anxious  to  appease  their 
offended  deity,  200  children  of  the  noblest  fami- 
lies were  thrown  into  the  flames.  Beside  which, 
300  of  the  principal  citizens  voluntarily  devoted 
themselves  as  a  sacrifice  to  this  bloody  divinity ; 
such  was  the  religion  of  this  people.  Mothers 
throwing  their  children  from  their  bosoms  into 
the  arms  of  a  flaming  statue,  and  fathers  beating 
cymbals  to  drown  their  piercing  cries. 

Their  afl'airs  still  remaining  in  a  desperate 
situation,  notwithstanding  their  sacrifices,  the 
Carthaginians  were  obliged  to  recall  Hamilcar 
from  Sicily.  But  he,  hoping  to  force  Agathocles 
to  return  to  the  defence  of  his  own  country,  only 
sent  off  a  small  body  to  the  relief  of  Carthage, 
and  remained  where  he  was  ;  till  the  Syrac*isans, 
watching  a  favourable  opportunity,  made  a  sud- 


204  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

den  irruption,  and  gained  a  most  decisive  victory - 
Thus  again  perished  the  hopes  of  obtaining  the 
sovereignty  of  Sicily.  In  the  mean  time,  Agatho- 
cles  gained  another  victory  over  the  Carthaginians, 
entirely  cleared  the  open  country,  and  prepared  to 
lay  close  siege  to  Carthage  itself;  by  the  reduction 
of  which  he  promised  himself  the  ability  of  con- 
firming the  title  he  had  assumed  of  King  of 
Africa. 

But  now  the  tide  of  prosperity,  upon  which  he 
had  so  long  and  exultingly  floated,  began  to  ebb. 
Circumstances  demanded  his  presence  in  Sicily. 
Leaving  Archagathus,  his  son,  to  prosecute  the 
war,  he  sailed  for  Syracuse.  An  unfortunate 
expedition  into  the  interior  of  Africa,  by  which 
the  army  was  greatly  diminished,  changed  the 
face  of  affairs.  Perceiving  that  the  ^yracusans 
were  not  invincible,  the  Carthaginians,  under 
Hanno,  a  great  commander,  made  a  determined 
sally,  and  entirely  defeated  their  enemies.  Agatho- 
cles,  hearing  of  this  disaster,  made  all  haste  to  re- 
turn and  retrieve  it,  but  he  came  too  late.  He  was 
entirely  routed  in  another  long  and  bloody  bat- 
tie  ;  and,  in  order  to  avoid  assassination  by  his 
son,  or,  rather,  to  avoid  another  disgrace,  he 
secretly  withdrew  to  Syracuse,  where  he  soon 
after  was  poisoned,  leaving  his  name  deeply  en- 
graved upon  the  imperishable  tablets  of  fame. 
His  army  shortly  put  to  death  his  two  sons  ;  and 
he  concluded  a  treaty  with  the  Carthaginians. 

From  this  time,  to  the  commencement  of  the 
first  Punic  war,  history  dwells  on  the  exploits  of 
Pyrrhus,  the  illustrious  king  of  Epirus,  who 
espoused  the  cause  of  Syracuse.  When  he  had 
for  some  time  acted  a  distinguished  part  in  Italy 
and  Sicily,  he  found  himself  unable  to  break 
fhe   iron   power  of  Rome,  and  retired  from  the 


CARTHAGE,  £05 

Stage,  with  this  prophetic  obsen^ation,  "  What  a 
line  field  of  battle  do  we  leave  to  the  Romans  and 
Carthaginians.'*  He  knew  that  Carthage  and 
Rome  were  now  the  only  candidates  for  the  em- 
pire of  the  world.  He  well  knew  that  the  jea- 
lousy of  one  could  only  be  extinguished  in' the 
utter  ruin  of  the  other.  But  little  did  he  think 
how  many  thousands  must  bleed  upon  that  vvide 
field  of  battle,  ere  the  contest  should  find  a  close. 

in.  The  third  division  of  the  Carthaginian 
liistory  extends  from  the  commencement  of  the 
first  Punic  war,  B.  C.  275,  to  the  end  of  the 
third,  or  the  fall  of  Carthage,  B.  C.  143,  con- 
taining 182  years.  It  will  be  impossible  for  us 
Id  descend  to  a  minute  detail  of  all  the  circum- 
stances which  attended  these  celebrated  wars. 
We  shall  note  a  few  things  in  the  first,  and  pro- 
ceed to  the  second,  which  is  by  far  the  most  im- 
portant. 

Rome  and  Carthage  bad  gradually  been  ex- 
tending their  territories,  and  became  more  and 
more  formidable  to  the  world,  as  well  as  to  each 
other.  As  heavy  clouds  slowly  advance  from 
opposite  directions,  and  threaten  each  other  with 
lightning  and  storm,  so  these  powerful  nations, 
urged  by  opposite  claims,  mutual  jealousies,  and 
high-toned  menace,  waited  only  a  favourable 
crisis,  to  rush  into  each  other's  deathful  em- 
brace, A  pretext  was  not  wanting.  An  enemy 
cannot  long  want  an  opportunity  of  showing  his 
malice,  however  mean  and  insignificant  the  occa- 
sion. 

A  Roman  legion  had  taken  possession,  by  vio- 
lence, of  the  town  of  Rhegium,  situated  upon  the 
Italian  shore  of  the  straits  separating  Italy  and 
Sicily,  and  treated  the  inhabitants  in  the  most  licen- 
tious manner.  A  body  of  Campanians,  belonging  to 


20b  ANCIENT  HlSTORVr. 

the  army  of  Syracuse,  imitated  their  example, 
and  took  violent  possession  of  Messina,  another 
town,  opposite  to  Rhegium,  on  the  Sicilian  shore. 
The  Romans  punished  their  perfidious  soldiers, 
and  restored  Rhegium  to  its  old  inhabitants.  But 
the  Campanians,  rather  than  submit  to  the  Syra- 
cusans,  admitted  a  Carthaginian  detachment  into 
the  city,  which  immediately  took  possession  of 
the  citadel.  A  part  of  the  citizens,  however, 
dissatisfied  with  this,  invited  the  Romans  to  come 
and  take  them  under  their  protection.  The  thing 
was  warmly  debated  in  the  Roman  senate,  and 
the  application  rejected  by  them.  But  the  peo- 
ple, having  now  a  fine  opportunity  of  breaking 
with  the  Carthaginians,  and  willing  to  humbla 
their  haught}'-  rival,  or,  rather,  to  establish  theii?. 
own  supremacy,  revoked  the  order  of  the  senate, 
and  sent  a  body  of  soldiers  to  Messina.  Dread- 
ing the  consequence  of  the  Carthaginians  obtain- 
ing a  footing  in  Italy,  and  prompted  by  thirst  of 
empire,  the  Romans  were  willing  to  sacrifice  the 
demands  of  justice,  by  joining  the  Syracusans, 
and  to  follow  the  call  of  ambition  and  inte- 
rest. Thus  do  nations,  as  well  as  individuals, 
prostitute  their  honour,  in  the  cause  of  every 
passion  thai  shall  chance  to  occupy  their  bo- 
som. 

The  Romans,  under  Claudius,  made  t-hemselves 
masters  of  Messina.  This  was  the  first  attempt 
at  invasion  that  they  ever  made  out  of  Italy. 
When  the  news  of  these  circumstances  arrived  at 
Carthage,  a  large  army  was  immediately  col- 
lected and  sent  to  Messina,  but  they  were  soon 
met  by  a  Roman  army,  under  Appius  Claudius, 
and  entirely  defeated.  This  was  a  terrible  blow 
to  Carthage  ;  it  detached  from  their  interest  the 
i^yracusans :—  tt   l;ud  open    the   greater   part  of 


PARTHAGE.  ^O^^ 


Sicily  to  the  Romans,  and  cast  a  heavy  shade 
over  the  prospects  of  the  Carthaginians,  which  was 
not    dispelled  till   the    unparalleled  progress  of 

Hannibal.  ,     ^     ,      •  • 

In  the  next  campaign,  the  Carthaginians  were 
again  unsuccessful,   being   defeated  before  Agri- 
aentum,  which  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Romans. 
As  this  city,  next  in  power  and  wealth  to  Syra-  • 
cuse,  was  the  general  resort  of  the  Carthaginians, 
most  of  their  important  possessions   tell  with  it. 
The  Carthaginians,  however,   possessed  one  ad- 
vantao-e,    which   would    effectually  prevent    the 
Romans  reaping   much  benefit  from  their  con- 
quests, and  bar  them  from  universal  empire  ;  this 
was  their  great  maritime  power.    The  Carthagi- 
nian squadrons  floated  without  molestation  in  every 
sea  then  navigated.    Whereas  the  Romans  had  no 
fleet,    having   been  hitherto    confined   to   Italy. 
Under  these   circumstances,    their  talent  for  ex- 
pedients became  necessary,  and  was  exerted  with 

effect. 

In  a  short  time  they  collected,  or  built,  a  con- 
siderable  fleet,  and  to  compensate  for  their  great 
inferiority,  invented  a  kind  of  corvus,  or  crow, 
which  was  a  heavy  beam,  with  grappling   irons 
fastened  at  the  end,  and   erected    them  in  the 
prows  of  their  vessels.     The  command  of  this 
fleet  was  given  to  Duillius,  the  consul.     The  Car- 
thaginians,   astonished   at  first  at   the  sight  ot  a 
Roman  fleet,  yet,  sure  of  victory,  advanced  to  the 
charge    with   great  satisfaction.     Duillius  closed 
with  them,  and  suddenly  dropping  his  grappling 
machines,  so   fastened   the  Carthaginian  vessels 
that  they  could  not  manffiuvre.     Amazed  at  tins 
new  species  of  combat,  they  fought  in  disorder 
for  some  time,  and  were  finally  defeated,  a  great 

number  of  their  vessels  being  sunk  and  taken.    A 


208  ANCIENT  HISTORY'. 

few  escaped.  Duillius,  returning  to  Rome,  was 
honoured  with  a  naval  triumph,  the  first  that  was 
ever  gained  by  a  Roman.  Of  the  beaks  of  the 
Carthaginian  ships  taken  in  this  battle,  a  Rostrum, 
which  word  signifies  "  a  beak,"  was  erected,  from 
which  the  Roman  orators  used  to  declaim,  and 
which  is  now  standing  a  memorial  both  of  the 
prowess  and  eloquence  of  the  Romans. 

The  fate  of  Sicily  was  not  yet  decided.  Ha- 
milcar  Barcas,  the  father  of  the  great  Hannibal, 
who  was  at  the  head  of  the  Carthaginian  forces 
in  th^t  island,  made  the  most  of  his  means,  gained 
several  advantages,  and  so  far  retrieved  his  cause, 
as  to  be  able  again  to  face  the  Romans  in  the  open 
field.  Several  engagements  at  sea  had  taken 
place,  but  they  were  undecisive.  At  length,  in 
the  ninth  year  of  the  war,  the  illustrious  Regulus, 
admiral  of  the  Roman  fleet,  determined  to  strike 
a  decisive  blow,  and  to  put  a  stop,  if  possible,  to 
the  profuse  waste  of  blood  and  treasure,  by  the 
destruction  of  the  Carthaginian  power.  Having 
collected  all  the  Roman  vessels,  he  sailed  in 
quest  of  the  Carthaginian  fleet,  and  found  it  oa 
the  southern  shore  of  Sicily.  The  two  fleets 
being  disposed  with  the  utmost  skill,  the  battle 
was  fought  in  three  divisions.  Although  the  Car- 
thaginian ships  were  far  superior  in  swiftness,  in 
size,  and  strength,  yet  the  Romans,  by  means  of 
their  grappling  irons,  brought  them  to  so  close  an 
engagement,  that  it  differed  but  little  from  a 
battle  on  land.  After  a  long  and  bloody  contest, 
the  Carthaginians  ^vere  broken  and  dispersed,  and 
Regulus  found  himself  master  of  the  sea. 

Pursuant  to  his  plan,  he  immediately  sailed  to 
Africa,  landed,  and  marched  towards  Carthage. 
The  inhabitants  of  Carthage,  recovering  from  the 
terror   into  which  an  unexpected  disaster  alway'f 


CARTHAGE.  209 

threw  them,  called  Hamilcar  from  Sicily,  who 
soon  appeared,  ready  to  stop  the  destructive  pro- 
gress of  Regulus.  But  his  opposition  was  of  no 
avail.  An  unfortunate  position,  in  a  mountainous 
Country,  where  the  elephants,  which  formed  an 
important  part  of  the  army,  could  not  act,  gave 
Regulus  an  easy  victory,  and  cost  the  Carthagi- 
nians 22,000  men.  In  addition  to  thi.-  misfortune, 
a  defection  of  Numidia,  and  several  other  allies, 
reduced  Carthage  to  the  very  brink  of  ruin.  In 
this  critical  state  of  their  affairs,  however,  they 
unexpectedly  found  a  deliverer  in  Xantippus,  the 
Lacedem-onian,  at  the  head  of  a  small  body  of 
Greek  mercenaries.  The  arrival  of  Xantippus, 
whose  reputation,  as  the  most  skilful  general  of 
iiis  day,  had  long  preceded  him,  revived  the 
desponding  spirits  of  the  C^arthaginian  soldiery. 
His  success  was  answerable  to  his  fame.  By 
taking  advantage  of  an  unlucky  mistake  of  Re- 
gulus, he  entirely  defeated  the  Romans,  delivered 
Carthage  from  its  dreadful  suspense,  took  Regulus 
himself  prisoner,  and  gained  an  unfading  laurel 
for  his  brow.  It  is  said,  by  some  authors,  that  the 
Carthaginians,  jealous  of  the  glory  of  Xantippus, 
murdered  him  on  his  return  home.  But  the  most 
respectable  historians  reject  the  story  as  false. 
The  Carthaginians  soon  after  gaining  the  ascen- 
dancy at  sea,  seemed  to  bid  fair  once  more  to 
threaten  the  existence  of  the  Roman  republic. 

But  their  good  fortune  was  of  short  continu- 
ance. Asdrubal,  the  Carthaginian  general  in  Si- 
cily, lost  a  great  army  in  a  m.ost  unprecedented 
manner.  Some  Sicilian  nierchants  hav  ing  brought 
great  quantities  of  wine  into  the  camp,  which  the 
soldiers  drank  to  excess,  Metellus,  the  Roman 
consul,  informed  of  what  was  passing,  attacked 
'iiem  in  the  heat  of  intoxication,  and  cut  them  to 
IB'- 


2iO 


ANCIE.NT    HISTORY. 


pieces.  But  we  cannot  dwell  upon  parllcuiari-. 
Various  was  the  success  of  the  war.  Hanriilcar, 
who  stands  second  to  Hannibal  among  the  Car- 
thaginian warriors,  gained  many  advantages ; 
but  the  Romans,  by  making  a  better  use  of  their 
victories,  were  eventually  masters  of  the  field. 
An  end  was  at  last  put  to  the  first  Punic  war  by 
the  Homans  in  a  splendid  victory  at  sea.  So  Z€a^ 
lous  were  they  to  humble  the  Carthaginians  on 
their  element,  that  when  their  fleet  was  utterly 
destroyed,  another  was  immediately  constructed 
at  private  expense,  and  manned  by  volunteers 
of  the  first  rank  in  the  Roman  republic.  Luta- 
tius,  who  commanded  this  armament,  brought 
the  Carthaginians  to  an  action  as  soon  as  possible., 
for  fear  of  their  being  reinforced  by  Hamilcar, 
whose  name  had  become  more  dreadful  to  the 
Romans  than  an  army.  He  obtained  a  signal 
victory.  The  senate  of  Carthage,  informed  of 
this  disaster,  exhausted  in  their  resources,  and 
trembling  for  the  progress  of  the  victorious  army, 
submitted  to  the  terms  of  a  most  humiliating 
treaty. 

Thus  closed  the  first  Punic  war,  of  24  years* 
continuance,  during  which  the  contending  powers 
had  gained  little,  but  lost  much.  Like  two  tygers 
of  equal  strength,  having  long  prosecuted  a  bitter 
conflict,  wearied  out  with  continued  struggling, 
and  covered  with  blood  and  wounds,' they  volun- 
tarily suspended  the  issue,  till  renovated  strength 
should  enable  them  to  strike  with  surer  and  more 
decisive  blow. 

The  interval  between  the  first  and  second  Pu- 
nic wars,  of  24  years,  was  marked  by  one  or  two 
events  of  note.  No  sooner  had  Carthage  freed 
herself  from  the  Romans,  than  she  found  herself  in 
a  quarrel  witjh  another  enemy,  raore  dangerous  io 


CARTHAGE.  211 

Ihe  state.  The  mercenary  soldiers  who  had  been 
led  by  Hamilcar  for  many  years  past  in  Sicily, 
hy  the  impolitic  measures  of  the  senate,  were  suf- 
fered to  collect  in  a  body  at  Sicca,  where  they 
were  waiting  the  payment  of  their  arrears.  The 
treasury  of  Carthage  had  been  exhausted,  and 
their  demands  could  not  be  answered.  Enraged 
at  this  disappointment,  knowing  their  own 
strength,  and  the  weakness  of  Carthage,  and  urged 
by  the  influence  of  seditious  leaders,  they  broke 
into  open  rebellion,  took  and  plundered  several 
eities  in  the  vicinity  of  Carthage,  and,  finally, 
threatened  that  city. 

The  Carthaginians,  attempting  to  remonstrate, 
were  answered  with  furious  insult,  and  the  most 
horrid  imprecations.  Spendius  and  Matho,  the 
principal  leaders,  one  a  slave,  the  other  a  Roman 
deserter,  knowing  that  death  awaited  them  pro* 
vided  peace  was  made,  exerted  themselves  to 
the  utmost  to  inflame  their  soldiers,  and  prevent 
an  accommodation.  They  stoned  and  put  to 
death,  in  the  most  barbarous  manner,  all  the  pri- 
soners they  took.  One  hundred  Carthaginian  no- 
blemen, together  with  Gisco  and  Hannibal,  dis- 
tinguished generals,  were  crucified  at  one  time. 
For  three  years  the  war  was  carried  on  in  this 
inhuman  manner,  till  it  was  finally  finished  by 
Hamilcar,  who  defeated  the  mercenaries  in  a  ge- 
neral battle,  and  retorted  their  cruelty,  by  crucify- 
ing Spendius,  Matho,  and  the  other  leaders  of  the 
rebellion. 

Following  the  example  of  the  mercenaries  in 
Africa,  the  Carthaginian  army  in  Sardinia  revolt- 
ed, murdered  their  leaders,  and  took  possession 
of  the  island.  Notwithstanding  an  existing  treaty, 
the  Romans  took  this  opportunity  of  aiming  ano- 
ther blow  at  Carthage,  embraced  the  cause  of  the 


S-t^  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

mercenaries,  robbed  the  Carthaginians  of  the 
island  of  Sardinia,  and  made  them  pay  2,000 
talents.  This  iniquitous  transaction  was,  doubt- 
less, one  of  the  causes  of  the  second  Punic  war, 
Hamilcar,  from  that  moment,  determined  to  em- 
brace the  first  occasion  that  might  offer,  to  re- 
venge the  stab  his  country  had  received  in  her  de- 
pressed and  helpless  situation  ;  but  he  did  not 
live  long  enough  to  accomplish  his  object.  His 
son  Hannibal  was  destined  to  prosecute  his  views, 
and  take  a  double  retribution. 

Soon  after,  Hamilcar  departed  to  take  the  com- 
mand in  Spain.  Before  he  went,  his  son  Hanni- 
bal, but  nine  years  old,  desired  leave  to  accom- 
pany him.  Hamilcar  consented,  but  first  caused- 
him  to  lay  one  hand  upon  his  sword,  and  the  ether 
upon  the  altar,  and  swear  eternal  enmity  to  the 
Romans.  He  did  so,  and  kept  his  oath.  Hamil- 
car, having  commanded  nine  years  in  Spain,  and 
conquered  a  considerable  part  of  that  country, 
was  killed  in  battle.  He  was  succeeded  in  the 
command  by  his  son-in-law  Asdrubal,  who  dying 
after  five  years,  left  the  command  to  Hannibal, 
then  26  years  old.  His  great  talents,  beauty,  and 
personal  accomplishments,  made  him  the  idol  of 
his  soldiers. 

Carthage  had  long  since  showed  many  symp- 
toms of  "  rottenness*'  in  the  republic.  The  citi- 
zens had  become  wealthy,  luxurious,  and  eftemi- 
nate.  But  the  most  alarming  indication  of  decay 
and  approaching  dissokition,  was  that  which  may 
emphatically  be  called  the  disease  of  republican 
governments — political  factiona.  The  people 
were  now  divided  between  two  great  families,  a: 
the  head  of  which  were  Hannibal  and  Hanno, 
But  the  shining  talents  of  Hannibal  bore  down. 
\\\  opposition,  and  enabled  him  to  cariv  into  ex- 


CARTHAGE..  213 

ecution  Ibe  vast  scheme  which  he  had  for  a  long- 


time been  meditating.  Twenty- four  years  had 
elapsed  since  the  conclusion  of  the  first  Punic  war. 
The  Carthaginians  had  in  some  measure  recover- 
ed their  former  level  ;  the  conquests  of  Hamilcar 
in  Spain  had  replenished  their  treasury,  and  dis- 
ciplined an  army.  Hannibal  was  already  in 
Spain,  and  without  delay  prepared  for  the  inva- 
sion of  Italy. 

Although  in  most  cases  it  is  certainly  true,  thai 
a  fortuitous  or  extraordinary  concurrence  of  cir- 
cumstances, rather  than  intrinsic  greatness,  ele- 
vate men  to  the  highest  places  in  the  temple  of 
fame,  yet,  if  there  ever  lived  a  man  who  owed 
his  elevation  to  original  genius  and  expansion  of 
mind,  the  honour  belongs  to  Hannibal,  the  Car- 
thaginian. We  cannot  but  be  struck  with  this  re- 
flection, if  we  follow  him,  not  as  a  harassing  ene- 
my, but  as  a  fellow  soldier,  through  his  arduous 
achievements. 

The  circumstance  which  led  more  directly  to 
the  second  Punic  war,  was  the  unjust  acquisition 
and  retention  of  the  island  of  Sardinia  by  the  Ro- 
mans. But  the  immediate  cause  of  the  war  was 
the  taking  of  Saguntum,  the  capital  city  of  Spain, 
which  stood  on  the  river  Iberus,  now  called  the 
Ebro,  the  boundary  of  the  Roman  territory.  Af- 
ter a  difficult  siege  of  nine  months,  the  principal 
inhabitants  of  Saguntum,  obtaining  no  relief  from 
Rome,  made  a  funeral  pile  of  their  treasures, 
their  wives,  and  children,  and  threw  themselves 
into  the  flames.  A  resolution  not  unlike  that  of 
Palafox,  in  the  bloody  siege  of  Saragossa.  Sagun- 
tum was  taken  and  plundered  by  Hannibal. 

Roman  ambassadors  were  sent  to  Carthage, 
complaining  of  the  infraction  of  the  treaty,  and 
offering  peare  or  war.      They  embraced  the  lat-' 


214  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

ter.  Returning  through  Spain,  the  ambassadors 
endeavoured  to  make  an  alliance  with  the  Span- 
iards, biit  they  were  told  to  "  seek  allies  where 
the  fate  of  Saguntum  was  not  known." 

Hannibal,  before  he  commenced  his  march  to- 
wards Italy,  sent   40,000  Spaniards  into  Africa, 
for   the  defence  of  that  country,  and  left  15,000 
Africans  in  Spain,  under  the  command  of  his  bro- 
ther Asdrubal.     He  was  obliged  to  cross  the  Py- 
renean  mountains,  to  march  through  the  centre  of 
Gaul  then  inhabited  by  fierce  and  warlike  nations, 
and,  finally,  to  surmount  the  snowy  ridges  of  the, 
Alps,  a  distance  of  above  1,000  miles,  before  he 
eould   arrive    upon  the  plains  of  Italy.      These 
difficulties,  however,  served  only  to  exercise  his 
various  talents.      After  having  subdued  four  or  five 
nations  south  of  the  Pyrenees,  and  lost  a  conside- 
rable part  of  his  army  in  battles  and  sieges,  he 
crossed  those  mountains    and  arrived   upon  the 
banks  of  the  Rhone.      Upon  a  general  review  of 
his  forces,  they  were  reduced  to  60,000  foot  and 
9,000  horse. 

The  Gauls,  terrified  at  the  success  of  Hannibal, 
and  enraged  at  the  progress  of  an  army  through 
the  heart  of  their  territory,  had  assembled  upon 
the  banks  of  the  Rhone  to  dispute  his  passage. 
Knowing  the  impossibility  of  crossing  in  the  face 
of  so  powerful  an  army,  Hannibal  sent  a  detach- 
ment to  pass  the  river  a  few  miles  higher,  and  at- 
tack the  camp  of  the  Gauls.  They  succeeded. 
The  Gauls,  seeing  their  camp  in  flames  behind 
them,  and  Hannibal  crossing  before  them,  were 
suddenly  siezed  with  a  panic,  and  fled  with  all 
possible  speed.  Five  days  were  spent  in  trans- 
porting the  army  across  the  Rhone,  which  was 
rendered  extremely  difficult  on  account  of  the 
elephants  refusing  to  approach  the  water.    By 


CARTHAGE.  215 

means  ot   large   rafts,   covered  with   earth,  they 
were  deceived,  and  at  length  carried  over. 

After  four  days  march,  they  came  to  the  foot 
of  the  Alps.  Their  towering  Euininits,  lost  amid 
the  clouds,  seen  in  distant  prospect  for  several 
days,  had  excited  the  apprehensions  of  the  Car- 
thaginians to  such  a  degree,  that  it  required  all 
the  subtlety,  authority,  and  persuasion  of  Hanni- 
bal, to  prevent  their  return  to  Spain.  When  they 
began  to  ascend,  a  nearer  view  of  stupendous 
precipices,  ridges  surmounting  ridges  crowned 
■with  everlasting  winter,  realized  their  apprehen- 
sions, and  called  for  the  strongest  exercise  of 
fortitude.  They  had  gone  too  far  to  recede.  An 
attempt  to  return,  by  exposing  their  fears,  would 
increase  their  dangers,  and  multiply  their  ene- 
mies in  the  rear.  They  must  ascend  or  perish, 
iiere  and  there  was  a  hut  upon  the  point  of  a 
crag,  or  brow  of  a  precipice,  inhabited  by  a  few 
jiaked  savages,  whose  meager  frames  and  fierce 
.countenances  afforded  an  appalling  picture  of  this 
inhospitable  region.  After  nine  days'  incessant 
toil,  suffering,  and  danger,  the  army  arrived  at 
the  top  of  the  Alps.  Here  they  halted  two  days 
to  refresh  themselves,  and  contemplate,  perhaps, 
the  most  beautiful  prospect  that  the  world  affords  . 
the  plains  of  Italy,  where  they  expected  a  full 
reward,  lay  beneath  them 

The  difficulties  in  descending  were,  if  possible, 
greater  than  those  of  ascending.  At  one  time, 
in  particular,  through  the  treachery  of  his  guides, 
Hannibal  was  led  into  a  defile,  which,  after  a 
gentle  declivity,  terminated  in  a  monstrous  pre- 
cipice, 1,000  feet  deep.  After  dispersing  the 
Gauls,  who  thought  now  to  destroy  him,  and  who 
rolled  immense  stones  down  upon  his  soldiers,  he 
cut  a  passage  in  the  solid  rock,  around  the  edge 


S16  ANCIENT    WiSTOPa'. 

of  this  precipice,  and  thus  saved  his  army.  But 
we  cannot  dwell.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  after 
conquering  every  possible  difficulty  that  occurred, 
and  performing  an  exploit  never  attempted  be- 
fore, he  erected  his  standard  upon  the  plains  of 
Italy.  Since  the  passage  of  the  Pthone,  he  had 
lost  more  than  half  his  army,  which  now  amount- 
ed to  but  26,000  men. — Few,  indeed;  but  after 
what  they  had  done,  what  could  they  not  do  1 

Hearing  that  Scipio,  the  Roman  general,  had 
crossed  the  Po,  and  was  marching  to  meet  him  at 
the  head  of  his  legions,  Hannibal  joyfully  struck 
his  tents,  and  advanced  to  the  combat.  The  two 
armies  met  upon  the  banks  of  the  Ticinus,  and 
Scipio,  though  far  superior  in  numbers,  expe- 
rienced a  total  overthrow.  This  victory  was 
principally  owing  to  Hannibal's  Numidian  caval- 
ry, whose  motions  were  unconfined  upon  those 
vast  plains  between  the  Po  and  Ticinus.  The 
remains  of  the  Roman  army  retired  to  Trebia, 
where  they  were  reinforced,  and  made  a  stand, 
waiting  the  approach  of  Hannibal.  They  did  not 
wait  long.  The  Carthaginians,  animated  by  their 
late  victory,  were  upon  the  banks  of  the  river 
Trebia  almost  before  the  Romans  had  time  to 
form  upon  the  opposite  bank. 

Upon  discovering  the  rash,  impetuous,  and  am- 
bitious character  of  his  antagonist,  Sempronius, 
the  successor  of  Scipio.  Hannibal  easily  drew  him 
into  an  engagement,  and  entirely  routed  him. 
After  this  battle  he  w^ent  into  v/inter  quarters, 
and  employed  himself  in  confirming  the  fickle 
virtue  of  the  Gauls  ;  and  by  means  of  various  dis- 
guises, and  the  many  languages  he  is  said  to  have 
understood,  discovered  and  defeated  every 
•treachery. 

Early  in  the  spring  Hannibal    marched   into 


CARTHAGE.  2 1 7 

Ktruria,  whither  he  was  pursued  by  Flaminius, 
a  restless,  obstinate,  and  rash  general.  After 
manoeuvring  some  time,  Hannibal  decoyed  him 
into  a  narrow  defile,  between  lake  Thrasymene 
and  the  mountains,  and  in  a  general  battle  killed 
15,000  Romans,  and  Flaminius  himself.  After 
these  repeated  overthrows,  the  Romans  made 
ehoice  of  Fabius,  the  dictator,  a  man  capable  of 
acting  against  Hannibal.  He  adopted  an  entirely 
different  mode  of  warfare.  Knowing  the  impo?:- 
sibility  of  defeating  the  Carthaginians  in  the 
open  field,  he  determined  to  harass  and  starve 
them  out.  Hannibal,  having  attempted  in  vain  to 
provoke  Fabius  to  combat,  began  to  tremble  for 
his  further  prosperity,  and  at  last  fell  into  a  snare, 
like  that  he  had  laid  for  Flaminius,  being  shut 
up  in  a  narrow  defile.  By  a  strange  stratagem, 
however,  he  extricated  himself,  and  outwitted 
even  Fabius  himself.  Collecting  all  the  cattle  in 
the  army,  he  tied  branches  to  their  horns,  and 
having  set  fire  to  them,  in  the  dead  of  night  drove 
them  up  the  hill  towards  Fabius'  camp,  and 
while  the  Romans  were  preparing  for  an  attack, 
Hannibal,  in  silence,  led  out  his  army,  and 
escaped  Shortly  after,  Hannibal  defeated  Mi- 
nucius,  Fabius'  colleague,  and  had  like  to  have 
destroyed  him. 

Fabius'  command  expiring,  he  was  succeeded 
by  Varro,  of  an  opposite  character.  Hannibal 
rejoiced  that  he  had  no  longer  to  contend  with 
that  crafty  policy  which  had  reduced  him  to 
the  brink  of  ruin. 

The  Romans  on  this  occasion  made  their  last 
and  greatest  eflfort  to  conquer  Hannibal.  Instead 
of  four  legions,  each  4,000  foot  and  300  horse, 
they  made  their  army,  exclusive  of  allies,  to  con- 
-ist  of  eight  legions,  each  6.000  men.  So  thai 
19 


\ 


218  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

40,000  native  Romans  stood  in  the  ranks.  The 
Roman  army  amounted  to  86,000  men  ;  Hanni- 
bal's were  but  60,000  ;  but  his  main  dependence 
was  the  20,000  who  had  crossed  the  Alps,  and 
gained  his  former  victories.  After  marching  and 
countermarching  for  some  time,  the  two  armies 
came  to  a  general  battle  at  Cannae,  in  the  southern 
part  of  Italy.  Hannibal's  usual  good  fortune  did 
not  desert  him.  The  conflict  was  truly  bloody. 
60,000  Romans,  among  whom  were  80  Senators, 
and  a  vast  number  of  the  nobility,  were  stretched 
upon  the  field,  before  the  struggle  ceased  ;  and 
when  the  Romans  fled,  so  ardent  were  the  Car- 
thaginians in  the  pursuit,  that  Hannibal  cried  out 
to  them,  "  Stop  soldiers,  spare  the  vanquished." 
He  despatched  his  brother  Mago  immediately  to 
Carthage  with  an  account  of  his  successes,  and  a 
demand  for  more  men ;  with  him  he  sent  three 
bushels  of  gold  rings,  drawn  from  the  fingers  of 
knights  and  senators. 

Hannibal  had  now  arrived  at  the  summit  of  his 
good  fortune,  and  had  the  Carthaginian  senate 
unanimously  concurred  in  sending  him  necessary 
aid,  we  see  no  reason  to  doubt  that  Rome  herself 
would  have  fallen  before  him. 

It  is  usual  with  Maherbal  to  charge  Han- 
nibal with  a  fault  in  not  marching  directly  to 
Rome,  after  the  battle  of  Cannae  ;  but  the  small- 
ness  of  his  army,  the  great  population  of  Rome, 
together  with  the  height  and  strength  of  the  walls, 
furnish  a  plea  tor  his  conduct  sufficiently  strong, 
independent  of  his  consummate  talents.  It  is  also 
said,  that  suffering  his  soldiers  to  live  in  the  lux- 
urious and  inebriating  pleasures  of  Capua  ruined 
him.  That  certainly  was  an  injury  ;  but  there 
existed  a  cause  more  powerful  and  eiFectual  to  his 
fall.     The  faction  of  Hanno,  his  inveterate  ene« 


CARTHAGE.  218 


mv  had  gained  the  ascendency  in  the  senate  of 
Carthage,  and  were  determined  to  sacrifice  every 
thine,  even  the  most  vital  interests  of  the  republic, 
to  effect  his  destruction.  They  obtained  their 
wish  ;  but  his  ruin  was  only  the  precursor  of  a 
more  awful  ruin  that  shortly  descended  upon  their 
own  heads,  and  annihilated  the  republic  of  Car- 
thage. .  „ 

Hannibal  was  abandoned  to  his  fate.  He  re- 
ceived  no  reinforcements  ;  his  army  was  reduced 
to  20,000  ;  his  brother  Asdrubal,  in  attempting  to 
join  him  from  Spain,  was  defeated,  killed,  and 
his  head  was  thrown  over  the  palisade  into  his 
camp.  At  this  shocking  sight,  Hannibal  cried, 
*<  It  is  done  !  I  have  lost  my  hope,  I  have  lost 
my  fortune  1"  Notwithstanding  these  multiplied 
disasters,  he  maintained  his  ground,  gained  many 
great  victories,  and,  with  his  little  band  of  heroes, 
gave  the  Romans  more  difficulty  than  any  other 
general  they  ever  contended  with.  For  17  years 
he  wandered  about  in  Italy,  often  in  sight,  and 
under  the  walls  of  Rome ;  but  the  extent  of  that 
great  city  rendered  it  impossible  for  him  to  in- 
vest it,  and,  therefore,  it  was  beyond  his  power. 
If  hard  fighting  could  have  reduced  it,  many 
times  it  would  have  fallen. 

At  length,  however,  a  man  arose  who  delivered 
Rome  from  her  formidable  enemy.  Cornelius 
Scipio  was  sent  into  Spain  to  take  the  command 
of  the  Roman  armies.  When  he  had  defeated 
the  Carthaginians  in  several  battles,  and  reduced 
a  considerable  part  of  their  territory  there,  he  de- 
termined to  transfer  the  seat  of  the  war  to  Africa, 
knowing  that  Hannibal  would  be  recalled,  and, 
in  all  probability,  influenced  by  the  examples  of 
Agathocles  and  Ree;ulus.  He  landed  in  Africa, 
and  marched  towards  Carthage.    As  he  expected^ 


^20  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

a  deputation  was  immediately  sent  to  Italy,  com- 
manding Hannibal's  return. 

The  crisis  was  past.  Hannibal  received  his 
order  with  expressions  of  indignation,  gnashed  his 
teeth,  and  burst  into  a  flood  of  tears.  He  saw 
the  prize,  for  which  he  had  toiled  so  many  years, 
plucked  from  his  hand  by  the  wanton  malice  of 
his  own  countrymen.  "  Hannibal,"  he  exclaim- 
ed, "  is  not  vanquished  by  the  Romans,  but  by 
Carthage.  Hanno  has  completed  the  ruin  of  my 
family,  by  the  destruction  of  Carthage."  He 
obeyed  the  summons  :  but  had  Italy  been  his 
native  country,  he  could  not  have  left  it  with 
more  regret.  Arriving  at  Carthage,  he  made  the 
best  dispositions  that  circumstances  would  permit. 
Obliged  to  fight,  and  certain  of  defeat,  on  ac~ 
count  of  Scipio's  vast  superiority  in  cavalry^ 
Hannibal  had  a  conference  with  Scipio,  and  en- 
deavoured to  accommodate,  but  in  vain.  The 
dispute  must  be  decided  by  the  sword  ;  and  the 
battle  of  Zama,  soon  after  fought,  put  an  end  to 
the  second  Punic  war.  Scipio  gained  the  sur- 
name of  Africanus,  but  Hannibal  lost  no  glory. 
It  is  said,  that  in  two  days  after  this  battle  was 
fought,  Hannibal  was  300  miles  distant,  collecting 
another  force.  But,  in  the  mean  time,  a  peace 
was  concluded  by  Scipio  with  Carthage  upon  the 
most  disgraceful  terms,  which  closed  the  second 
Punic  war,  B.  C.  188,  after  it  had  continued  17 
years. 

The  interval  between  the  second  and  third  Pu- 
nic wars  is  distinguished  by  no  events  worthy  of 
notice,  except  the  various  fortune  of  Hannibal, 
That  enmity  which  he  had  sworn  to  the  Romans, 
when  but  a  child,  grew  with  his  years,  became 
keener  with  every  battle  he  fought,  and  now  had 
become  so  interwoven  with  his  feelings,   tliat  he 


CATtTHAGE.  221 

seemed  only  to  live  for  an  opportunity  of  satia- 
ting hiS   veiii,eance.      After  the  peace  was  made, 
his  reputation  was  so  high,   that  his  countrymen 
placed  him  at  the  head  of  the  governmeni.     All 
the  departments  of  the  state  immediately  felt  his 
energy.     The  treasury,  which  had  been  exliaust- 
ed,  and  which  was  usually  replenished  by  oppres- 
sive exactions,  he  filled  by  a  skilful  management 
of  the  finances.      The  system  of  bribery  and   fa- 
vouritism, which  pervaded  all  ranks  of  office,  he 
abolished — the  laws,  under  his  regard,  were  car- 
ried into  impartial  execution — justice  ceased  to  be 
prostituted  to  interest — in  short,    his  administra- 
tion fully  evinced  his  desert  of  a  civil,  as  well  as 
of  a  military  crown.     When  his  vigorous  system 
of  government  had  been  felt  for  some  years,  the 
people   began    agiin  to  be  restive,  the  senate  to 
be  jealous,  and  the  old  faction  of  Hanno  to  gain 
the     ascendency,       Grounciie3s  complaints,    and 
false  accusations  were  sent  lo  Rome,  to  effect  his 
ruin.       The  Romans,  who  never  felt  safe  while 
Hannibal  was  alive,  even  w  ithout  an  army,  seized 
the  first  opportunity  that  olTered  to   destroy  him. 
Ambassadors    were  sent  to  Carthage,   upon  pre- 
tence of  inquiring  into  the  truth  of  these  accusa- 
tions.    Hannibal,  hearing  of  their  arrival,  and  ap- 
prised of  their  real  design,  werd  on  board  a  ves- 
sel and   fled  to  Tyre,    and  thence  to  Antioch,  in 
search  of  Antiochus,  king  of  Syria.     From  Anti- 
och he  went  to  Ephesus,  w  here  he  was   received 
by  Antiochus  in  the  most  Mattering  manner.     Af- 
ter some  time  he  engaged  the  king  in  a  war  with 
the  Romans.     But  instead  of  adopting  the  mode 
of  w'arfare  which  Hannibal  proposed,  Antiochus, 
prompted  by  envy  of  the  Carthaginian's  fame, 
pursued  a  plan  directly  contrary.      The  conso- 


2X2 ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

quence  of  which  was,  that  he   was   defeated  by 
the  Romans  ahnost  without  loss  of  blood. 

During  Hannibal's  residence  at  the  court  of  An- 
tiochus,  Scipio  came  as  ambassador  from  Rome. 
One  day,  as  they  were  conversing,  Scipio  asked 
Hannibal  who  he  thought  the  greatest  general 
that  ever  lived  ?  He  replied,  "  Alexander,  king  of 
Macedon."  «'  Who  next  ?"  "  Pyrrhus."  "  Who 
is  the  third  ?"  continued  Scipio.  Hannibal  then 
named  himself.  "  But  what  would  you  have 
said,"  added  he,  *'  had  you  vanquished  me  ?" 
"  I  would,"  replied  Hannibal,  "  have  ranked 
myself  above  Alexander,  Pyrrhus,  and  ail  the  ge- 
nerals the  world  ever  produced."  He  might  have 
done  it,  as  it  is. 

Receiving  no  further  protection  from  the  igno- 
ble Antiochus,  he  took  sanctuary  among  the  Gor- 
tynii,  in  the  island  of  Crete.  But  here,  in  dan- 
ger of  being  robbed,  he  filled  some  vessels  with 
lead,  and  deposited  them  in  the  temple  of  Diana, 
while  he  concealed  his  gold  and  silver  in  hollow 
brazen  statues,  and  thus  escaped.  From  thence 
he  fled  to  the  court  of  Prusias,  king  of  Bythiniaj 
whom  he  stirred  up  to  war  with  the  Romans. 
Hannibal  himself  obtained  many  victories  over 
Eumenes,  by  the  strength  of  his  genius,  and  the 
variety  of  his  stratagems,  rather  than  advantag-e  of 
force.  Prusias  growing  sick  of  the  war,  and  the 
Roman  ambassador  demanding  Hannibal,  he  con- 
sented to  deliver  him  into  their  hands.  But  the 
Carthaginian,  finding  it  impossible  to  escape,  and 
determined  not  to  surrender  himself,  took  some 
poison,  which  he  always  carried  about  him,  and 
thus  spoke  :  "  Let  us  deliver  the  Romans  from 
the  anxiety  with  which  they  have  so  long  beeu 
tortured,  since  they  cannot  wait  with  patience  an 
old  man's  death."      After  reprojiching  the  vile* 


CARTHAGE. 


ns 


uess  of  the  Romans,  and  cursing  Prusias  for  thus 
delivering  his  friend  and  guest  to  be  murdered^ 
be  swallowed  the  poison,  and  died,  at  70  yeijrs  of 
age. 

Hannibal  did  not,  like  Alexander,  experience 
an  uninterrupted  current  of  good  fortune  ;  but  it 
we  judge  of  him  by  what  he  actually  did,  whe- 
ther fortune  was  favourable  or  adverse,  we  shall 
see  strong  reason  to  set  him  before  Alexander,  it 
fiot  before  every  general  that  has  ever  lived. 

Thirty-nine  years  after  the  close  of  the  second 
Punic  war,  the  .third  began,  which  continued  three 
■years.  The  Romans  kept  a  watchful  eye  upon 
Carthage,  and  as  soon  as  they  saw  it  began  to 
revive  and  flourish,  their  hatred  and  jealousy  be- 
gan again  to  appear.  Put  the  principal  cause  ol 
ihe  hist  Punic  war  was  the  conduct  of  Cato,  a 
leading  character  at  Rome.  So  constant  and  ac- 
tive was  his  hatred,  that  it  is  said  he  never  made 
a  speech  in  the  senate,  upon  any  occasion,  but 
he  closed  it  v/ith,  "  Carthage  must  be  destroyed.'* 
The  settlement  of  a  dispute  between  Carthage 
and  Numidia  was  the  pretext,  and  the  destruction 
of  Carthage  was  the  object.  The  first  intimation 
which  the  Carthaginians  received  of  their  hostile 
intention,  was  an  order  to  deliver  up  300  young 
noblemen,  as  hostages  for  their  future  conduct. 
Terrified  at  this  demand,  yet  fearing  to  disobey, 
the-  hostages  were  sent  to  the  Roman  camp. 
Scipio  then  made  known  the  second  part  of  this 
iniquitous  business,  and  demanded  the  surrender 
of  all  their  ships,  military  engines,  and  small 
arms.  The  Carthaginian  senate  perceiving,  at 
last,  the  object  of  the  Romans,  yet  dreading  the 
consequences  of  a  refusal,  again  submitted,  and 
Carthage  was  entirely  disarmed.  The  consul, 
imagining  tiie  Carthaginians  incapable  of  resist- 


224  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

ance,  in  the  last  place  let  them  know  that  it  wag 
a  decree  of  the  senate  of  Rome  that  Carthage 
should  be  destroyed,  and  ordered  them  all  to 
abandon  it  in  three  days.  The  city  was  filled 
with  terror  and  confusion.  Tears  and  prayers 
moved  not  the  inflexible  Romans,  till,  driven  to 
desperation,  the  people  shut  their  gates,  and  de- 
termined to  hold  out  to  the  last  extremity.  With 
incredible  exertions  they  sustained  a  siege  of  three 
years,  during;  which  time  they  equipped  a  fleet, 
the  women  cutting  off  their  hair  to  furnish  ropes. 
But,  by  unskilful  management,  they  lost  it,  and 
were  defeated  in  several  assaults.  The  city  was 
at  length  so  closely  invested,  that  all  supplies 
were  cut  off,  and  the  miserable  citizens  driven  to 
the  necessity  of  subsisting  upon  the  flesh  of  each 
other  for  a  considerable  time.  The  consul  Ame- 
lianius  at  last  obtained  possession  of  the  city,  after 
a  bloody  conflict  of  six  days,  witli  little  intermis- 
sion, and  levelled  it  with  the  ground,  B.  C.  146, 
746  years  from  its  foundation.  The  treasu^res  car- 
ried to  Rome  amounted  to  4,470,000  pounds 
weight  of  silver.  The  Roman  senate  decreed 
that  it  should  never  be  rebuilt,  denouncing  dread- 
ful imprecations  upon  whoever  should  attempt  it. 
Thus  fell  Carthage,  the  second,  if  not  the  first, 
city  in  the  world,  more  by  the  intrigues  of  its 
factious  citizens,  than  the  arms  of  Rome. 

The  war  between  Rome  and  C-arthage,  whether 
we  consider  the  extent  of  preparation,  the  vast 
resources,  or  the  prize  contended  for,  was  con- 
ducted with  the  firmest  spirit — the  most  extreme 
and  protracted  exertions,  and  resulted  in  the  most 
obvious  effects,  on  the  world,  of  any  war  recorded 
in  historj^  Other  great  nations  that  fell  were 
palsied  with  vice,  and  presented  an  immense 
fabric,  unwieldy,  weak,  and  tottering  to  its  fall, 


CARTHAGE.  225 

Rome  and  Carthage  were  like  two  warriors  in 
th'^  meridian  of  their  strength,  capable  of  terrible 
efforts  to  annoy  or  resist.  When  Carthage  fell, 
Rome  was  left  without  a  rival.  She  had  other 
wars  which  were  just  sufficient  to  keep  her  weap- 
ons bright ;  she  had  other  conquests,  sufficient  to 
keep  her  treasures  full.  Rome's  formidable 
enemies,  after  Carthage  fell,  were  among  her 
citizens  To  her  fortunes  and  destiny  we  shall 
next  direct  your  nttnntion 


LECTURE  X. 


Rome, 

No  object  in  ancient  history  presents  a  form 
so  majestic  and  well  defined  as  the  Roman 
empire.  The  Grecian  institutions  were  separated 
into  small  portions,  and  could  not  make  one  entire 
impression.  The  nations  and  empires  still  more 
ancient  are,  from  that  circumstance,  involved  in 
obscurity,  and  covered  with  darkness.  The 
Roman  state  is  like  a  river  which  begins  from  a 
small  fountain,  and  runs  a  long  way  without 
much  accumulation  of  waters  :  it  then  becomes  a 
majestic  torrent,  "  its  waves  roll  in  light,"  and, 
at  length,  reach  the  ocean. 

In  the  present  lecture,  the  Roman  history  will 
be  considered  to  the  conquest  of  Carthage — in 
the  subsequent  one,  to  the  reign  of  Augustulus, 
and  the  subversion  of  the  western  empire,  by  the 
Goths  and  Vandals. 

The  eloquent  pen,  and  bold  imagination  of 
Virgil,  has  deduced  the  descent  of  the  Romans 
from  ancient  Troy.  This  idea  suited  not  only 
the  fictions  of  the  poet,  but  the  pride  and  ambition 
of  the  Roman  character,  and  was  peculiarly 
soothing  and  agreeable  to  the  nation.  For,  as  the 
Greeks  conquered  and  triumphed  over  Troy,  the 
Romans  had  very  recently  done  the  same  to  the 
Greeks:  the  descendants  of  the  Trojans  had 
now  conquered  the  conquerors  of  Troy. 

^neas,    a    Trojan  prince,    when  Troy    was 


ROME.  227 

destroyed  by  the  Greeks,  collected  the  remains 
of  his  countrymen,  and,  after  spending  several 
years  in  coasting  about  the  Mediterranean  sea, 
he  at  length  afifected  a  settlement  in  Italy,  near 
the  mouth  of  the  river  Tyber ;  and  forming  a 
union  with  Evander  king  of  the  Latins,  the 
Trojans  and  Latins  ultimately  became  one 
nation,  known  afterwards  by  the  appellation  of 
Romans. 

From  jEneas  a  succession  of  princes  is  enume- 
rated ;  and  the  wars  in  Italy,  carried  on  by 
-Eneas  and  Ascanius,  his  son,  form  the  subject  of 
the  latter  part  of  Virgil's  poem. 

The  city  of  Rome  was  founded  by  Romulus 
753  years  before  the  christian  sera  :  it  has  now 
been  a  city  of  note  and  importance  2,567  years. 
No  city  on  earth  has  enjoyed  equal  fame,  con- 
sequence, and  duration. 

The  first  inhabitants  of  Italy  were  dispersed 
in  tribes  or  clans,  independent  of  each  other, 
and  without  a  regular  form  of  government  or 
established  laws.  The  fertility  of  the  soil,  and 
mildness  of  the  climate,  oflfered  an  easy  subsis- 
tence, and  the  extensive  peninsula  was  early 
covered  w  ith  a  numerous  population.  Romulus, 
at  the  head  of  a  small  tribe,  gave  his  name  to 
the  people,  who  were  called  Romans,  and  laid 
the  foundations  of  a  city  destined  to  render  his 
name  famous  through  every  age  of  the  world. 

The  reign  of  this  founder  of  a  mighty  empire 
was  long  and  prosperous.  For  37  years  he  was 
vigorously  employed  in  establishing  the  people 
of  his  small  realm,  and  rendering  secure  the 
foundations  of  his  throne.  In  a  continued  series 
of  military  enterprises  he  was  successful,  and 
generally  came  off  victorious,  and  his  little  state 
became  a  terror  to  all  its  neighbours. 


228  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

It  may  not  be  useless  to  take  some  notice  of 
the  government  of  this  kingdom,  which  for  several 
centuries  contained  little  more  than  one  city. 
By  this  means  we  may  be  able  to  form  some 
general  ideas  of  the  nature  of  the  kingly  gov- 
ernments of  those  early  times.  The  government 
of  the  Roman  state,  though  monarchical,  was 
not  despotic.  Romulus  was  assisted  in  the 
cabinet  by  a  senate  of  an  hundred  men,  who 
were  chosen  for  their  gravity,  discreetness,  age 
and  wisdom.  The  important  concerns  of  the 
state  were  managed  by  the  advice  and  aid  of 
this  venerable  body,  who  were  called  fathers,  or 
patricians. 

The  authority  of  the  senate  was  enhanced  by 
the  consideration  that  the  monarchy  was  elective^ 
but  under  what  particular  regulations  does  not 
appear.  Nor  are  we  acquainted  with  the  mode  of 
electing  senators,  w^ho,  it  seems  probable,  held 
their  office  for  life. 

Romulus,  though  destroyed  by  an  insurrection, 
was  enrolled  among  the  gods,  and  divine  honors 
were  paid  to  him.  An  author,  with  very  pert 
sarcasm,  remarks,  that  he  whom  the  Romans  could 
not  endure  as  a  man,  they  were  willing  to 
worship  as  a  god.  And  it  must  be  confessed 
that  he  was  not  the  most  exceptionable  of  the 
deities. 

Numa  Pompilius,  a  prince  of  great  wisdom 
and  virtue,  succeeded  Romulus.  He  is  honoured 
as  the  founder  of  the  laws  and  religion  of  Home. 
To  these  important  regulations  he  directed  his 
chief  attention.  Numa  was  a  Sabine  of  the  city 
of  the  Cures,  and,  in  honor  to  his  nation,  the 
Roman  assembly  were  always  addressed  under 
the  appellation  of  Quirites.  The  duration  and 
prosperity  pf   the    Pvoman  state  was   probably 


ROME.  229 

owing  to  this  great  and  v/ise  legislator,  althou^^h 
he  made  (e\v  wars,  and,  perhaps,  no  addition  to 
their  territories. 

During  the  four  succeeding  reigns  of  Tullus 
Hostilius,  Ancus  Martius,  Tarquinius  Priscu?, 
and  Servius  Tullus,  there  were  no  material 
changes  in  the  Roman  state.  Through  these 
long  reigns,  all  of  which  were  of  a  warliiie 
character,  uniformity  prevails  ;  there  v/ere  many 
victories  and  defeats  on  such  a  scale  as  might  be 
expected  from  a  kingdom  not  20  miles  square. 
But  in  the  reign  of  Tarquin,  surnamcd  the  Proud, 
events  of  the  greatest  importance  occurred, 
which  resulted  in  a  revolution  of  the  government, 
and  abolition  of  monarchy. 

Tarquin,  the  seventh,  and  last  king  of  Rome, 
bad  made  his  way  to  the  throne  by  intrigue 
and  violent  usurpation  ;  had  murdered  all  the 
family  of  Tarquinius  Priscus,  the  next  heirs  of 
the  throne,  except  Lucius  Junius  Brutus,  who 
feigned  himself  an  idiot,  to  escape  the  rage  of  the 
usurper.  But  the  administration  of  Tarquin 
was  of  the  same  character  as  the  measures  by 
which  he  had  obtained  the  sovereignty.  A 
haughty  and  cruel  tyrant,  he  had  laid  aside  the 
advice  of  his  council,  and  his  government  was 
violent,  oppressive  and  unjust.  Yet  such  was 
his  energy,  vigilance,  and  power,  that  no  one 
dared  to  seek  redress. 

An  event  took  place  which  furnished  the 
people  with  the  pretext  and  the  opportunity  of 
dethroning  the  tyrant.  Sextus,  the  king's  son, 
in  the  absence  of  his  father,  had  offered  violence 
to  Lucretia,  the  wife  of  Collatinus,  a  senator  of 
high  rank,  and  great  influence  at  Rome.  The 
illustrious  Lucretia  sent  for  her  father  and  hus- 
bandj  who  were  then  abroad,  serving  in  the  army 
20 


230  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

of  T.irquin,  and  informed  them  of  lier  misfoiLUiic. 
DesirintT  ti  em  to  avenge  her  wronjis  on  the 
perrdious  house  of  Tarquin,  she  drew  a  poniard 
froiii  her  robe,  and,  phuT^ing  it  into  her  bosom, 
expired  before  their  eyes. 

While  tliey  stood  round  her  lifeless  corse, 
overwhelmed  with  grief  and  despair,  their  at- 
tention was  suddenly  arrested  by  the  appearance 
of  a  character  as  extraordinary  as  the  calamity 
of  the  mon>c;n  was  great.  Among  others  whom 
the  rumor  of  Lucretia's  death  had  drawn  together, 
Junius  Brutus,  the  reputed  fool,  was  present,  and 
while  ail  were  drowned  in  tears,  and  held  in 
silent  suspense,  Brutus  suddenly  seized  the 
bloody  dagger,  and  holding  it  up  toward  heaven, 
excl.Timed,  "  Be  witness,  ye  gods,  that  from  this 
moment  1  proclaim  myself  the  avenger  of  the 
chaste  Lucretia's  cause — from  this  moment  I  de- 
clare myself  the  enemy  of  Tarquin  and  his 
bloody  house  :  henceforth  my  life  shall  be  em- 
ployed in  opposition  to  tyranny,  and  for  the 
freedom  and  happiness  of  my  country." 

With  this  he  presented  the  dagger  to  the  rest, 
and  caused  them  to  swear  the  same  oath.  The  in- 
surrection was  general,  and  when  the  news  of 
these  transactions  reached  the  army,  the  defec- 
tion fron.  the  tyrant  was  rapid  ;  the  soldiers  and 
the  citizens  were  animated  by  one  spirit,  and 
Tarquin  made  his  escape  into  voluntary  exile. 
His  restless  and  active  spirit,  however,  could  not 
rest,  and  he  lived  to  inflict  many  calamities  upon 
his  country.  He  was  perpetually  fomenting  new 
wars,  and  rousing  the  enemies  of  Rome  to  acts  of 
hostility  and  dangerous  invasions. 

The  Roman  people  proceeded  to  new-model 
the  government  and,  instead  of  a  king,  thex-^ 
appointed  two  consuls,  whose  powers  in  the  ag 


ROME.  231 

gregate  were  little  inferior  to  those  of  the  kings, 
but,  with  this  material  difference  and  dirninvition, 
that  the  consuls  divided  the  power  between  them, 
and  were  elected  every  year. 

The  expulsion  of  Tarquin  was  245  years  ^fter 
the  building  of  Rome,  at  which  time  ti,-:  nrru^d 
of  Grecian  glory  had  nearly  arrived  :  Brbyon 
had  fallen,  and  the  Persian  empire  was  on  the 
decline. 

Whether  it  was  owing  to  the  revolution  in  ^.he 
Roman  government,  or  to  a  concurrence  of  otuer 
causes,  w^e  cannot  say,  but  the  Roman.'=;  vow  be- 
gan to  extend  their  territories.  They  had,  soon 
after  the  expulsion  of  Tarquin,  several  dangtMous 
wars  from  each  of  which  they  rose  more  warlike 
and  terrible,  to  extend  their  conquests.  The 
illustrious  Brutus  was  the  great  progenitor  of 
Marcus  Brutus,  vVho  conspired  with  Cas-sius  against 
Julius  Caesar.  The  family  of  Brutus  had  not  lost 
its  patriotism  in  the  days  of  ("oBsar,  but  the 
Roman  people  had  lost  their  virtue,  and  v»^ere 
not  ready  to  second  the  last  of  that  illustrious 
race  as  they  did  the  first. 

Junius  Brutus  did  not  long  enjoy  the  freedom 
he  gave  his  country.  Tarquin  prevailed  on  the 
Veians  to  espouse  his  cause;  who,  immediately 
raising  an  army,  advanced  towards  Rome,  with 
an  intention  of  re-establishing  the  tyran*:  on  his 
throne.  Brutus  and  Collatinus,  who  wev«^  first 
appointed  consuls  after  the  revoluiion,  at  the 
head  of  the  Roman  forces,  marched  out  against 
them,  and  a  severe  battle  was  fought.  The  Ro- 
mans were  victorious,  but  the  victory  cost  them 
dear  ;  many  of  their  best  men  were  slain  :  but  the 
one  chiefly  to  be  lamented,  was  the  illustrious 
Brutus.  Aruns,  the  son  of  Tarquin,  in  the  heat  of 
the  battle  saw  the  brave  Roman,  and  encountered 


232 


ANCIENT  IIISTOKV. 


him    ill  single  combat.     They  both  fell  dead,  hy 
mutual  wounds. 

No  Roman  ever  left  behind  him  a  more  grate- 
ful  remembrance  than  Brutus  :  the  matrons  of 
Rome  mourned  for  him  annually,  and  his  family, 
during  the  times  of  the  republic,  held  the  highest 
Tank  in  the  state. 

Though  Tarquin  failed  of  his  grand  object,  In 
was  encouraged,  by  the  death  of  Brutus,  to  prose 
cute  still  more  vigorously   his  schemes  for  reco 
vering  his  throne.     He   prevailed  on  Porsenna, 
king  of  Hetruria,  probably   the   most  powerful 
prince  in  Italy,  to  engage  in  a  war  with  the  Ro 
mans,  for  his  restoration.     Porsenna,  aft^r  seve 
ral  battles,  in  which  the  Romans  were  defeated 
marched   to  Rome,  and  laid  siege   to   the   city 
The  Romans  now  began  to  display  that  singular 
courage  and  patriotism    which  re«idered  them  so 
famous  in  history,  and  so  formidable  in  war. 

Mutius,  a  Roman  youth,  went  out  to  the  He- 
fcruscan  camp,  and  making  up  to  a  groupe  where 
the  king  was  standing  with  some  of  his  officers, 
drew  a  dagger  and  stabbed,  as  he  supposed,  the 
king  to  the  heart.  It  was  the  king's  secretary, 
whom  he  had  mistaken  for  the  king.  When 
Mutius  was  examined,  he  told  Porsenna  that  he 
was  a  Roman,  and  that  there  were  300  young 
warriors  like  himself,  who  had  sworn  the  king's 
destruction.  You  must  prepare,  therefore,  said 
he,  for  their  attempts  ;  and  you  shall  see  that  a 
Roman  can  suffer  as  well  as  act ;  with  this  he 
thrust  his  hand  into  the  fire,  and  suffered  it  to 
burn  with  entire  composure. 

The  impulse  of  generosity  in  a  barbarian  is  as 
sudden  as  that  of  anger  and  revenge.  Porsenna, 
amazed  at  such  bravery  and  fortitude,  dismissed 
Mutius  with   honour,  and   immediately  proposed 


HOME.  23,3 

terms  of  peace  to  the  Romans,  which  they  ac- 
cepted, and  the  war,  which  had  threatened  the 
existence  of  the  Roman  state,  was  terminated. 

The  cities,  and  states,  and  nations  of  Italy 
gradually  melted  away  before  the  Roman  re- 
public ;  nor  is  it  probable  that  any  nation,  ancient 
or  modern,  ever  made  so  many  wars  lor  conquest, 
or  were  actuated  by  an  ambition  so  stern,  un- 
relenting, and  perpetual.  They  fought  for  do- 
minion ;  the  cold,  deadly,  and  blasting  ambition 
of  power  was  their  ruling  principle.  In  Nebu- 
chadnezzar's dream,  of  an  image  representing  the 
four  great  monarchies,  the  Assyrian  was  the  gold, 
Ihe  Persian  the  silver,  the  Grecian  the  brass,  the 
Roman  the  iron.  Like  iron,  the  prophet  Daniel 
foretold,  they  should  break  in  pieces  and  bruise 
the  whole  earth.  They  resembled  iron  in  their 
abundance,  unloveliness,  and  strength.  The  tem- 
ple of  Janus,  built  by  Numa,  to  be  shut  only  in 
timecf  peace,  was  never  shut  but  three  times  for 
the  space  of  more  than  1,200  years. 

The  Roman  military  tactics  differed  essentially 
from  the  Grecian.  Instead  of  the  phalanx,  the 
Roman  integral  military  corps,  was  the  legion, 
which  possessed  some  essential  advantages  over 
the  phalanx,  and,  perhaps,  in  some  respects,  was 
inferior  to  it.  In  the  phalanx  the  men  were 
ranged  in  close  order,  which  rendered  their 
column  impenetrable,  and  gave  them  power  to 
make  an  impression  ;  but  must  often  have  de- 
prived them  of  the  effect  of  free  action  and  rapid 
movement. 

The  Roman  legion,  according  to  the  nature  ai;id 
proper  use  of  their  armour,  was,  it  is  probable, 
the  most  efficient  corps  ever  formed.  In  its  last 
and  most  finished  state,  when  in  service,  it  con- 
tained 12,000  men.  It  received  great  improve- 
20- 


234  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

ments  from  Julius Ccesar,  and  the  Antonines,  The 
legion  contained  ten  cohorts,  and  each  one  com- 
manded by  8  prefect,  and  55  companies,  com- 
manded bV  a  centurion.  The  first  cohort  always 
held  the  place  of  honour,  consisted  of  1,105  sol- 
diers, and  the  other  cohorts  of  555,  amounting  in 
the  whole  to  6,100.  Their  armour  was  a  helmet 
with  a  lofty  crest,  a  breast-plate,  and  sometimes  a 
coat  of  mail,  greaves  on  the  legs,  and  a  shield, 
commonly  called  a  buckler,  four  feet  in  length, 
and  two  and  a  half  in  breadth,  made  of  an  oval 
form  of  thin  light  wood,  and  covered  with  ox  hide 
and  plates  of  brass  ;  this  they  wore  on  their  left 
arm  :  their  spear  or  jnlu7n  was  about  six  feet 
long,  terminated  with  a  triangular  point  of  steel, 
18  niches  long.     This  dreadful  javelin,  when 

"  Launched  from  the  vigour  of  a  Roman  arm," 

often  pierced  helmets,  breast-plates,  and  buck- 
lers, and  for  close  engagement,  is  considered  by 
some  as  the  most  formidable  weapon  of  war  ever 
used.  It  was  thrown  at  the  distance  of  six  or  ten 
yards,  and  cavalry  seldom  chose  to  come  within 
its  reach. 

A  body  of  cavalry,  consisting  of  ten  troops  or 
squadrons,  belonged  to  each  legion.  The  first 
troop  of  132  was  attached  to  the  first  cohort. 
The  remaining  troops  consisted  of  66  men  each, 
and  the  whole  cavalry  of  a  legion  was  726  men. 
A  legion  in  battle  array  was  ranged  eight  deep, 
with  an  interval  of  three  or  four  feet  between 
each  man,  both  in  rank  and  file  ;  and  the  cavalry, 
unless  local  circumstances  forbid,  were  disposed 
in  the  wings.  The  moment  the  pilum  was  thrown, 
they  drew  their  swords,  which  were  short  broad 
two-edged,   and  sharp  pointed,   and  closed  with 


2Si 


the  enemy.  The  Roman  evolutions  and  nia- 
ncEuvres  in  battle  vs'cre  so  quick,  as  to  be  almost 
unperceived  by  the  Gneray.  By  tbis^art,  Casar 
often  saved  his  amiy,  and  prevented  the  loss  of 
men.  Orders  properly  given,  and  executed  v/ith 
celerity,  almost  insure  a  victory  ;  but  this  can 
only  take  place  where  every  soldier  has  s\i(^i- 
cient  self-command  to  hear  and  understand  his 
orders. 

Beside  the  infantry  and  cavalry  of  a  legion,  a 
number  they  c'dVitd  exjjcditi^  or  light  armed,  to- 
gether with  servants,  attendants,  and  men  who 
had  the  care  of  the  baggage,  made  each  full  le- 
gion, in  the  latter  periods  of  the  empire,  to  be 
about  12,000  men.  The  camp  of  two  legions 
was  an  exact  square  of  700  yards.  This  was 
levelled,  and  the  tents  were  pitched  in  regular 
broad  streets,  and  surrounded  by  a  rampart 
twelve  feet  high,  surrounded  by  a  trench,  twelve 
feet  broad  and  deep  ;  in  the  centre  was  the 
praetorium,  or  general's  head  quarters.  In  this 
camp  the  most  perfect  order,  cleanliness,  and 
discipline  prevailed.  The  Roman  encampment 
rendered  their  wars  successful  more  than  almost 
any  other  part  of  their  military  system  ;  and 
such  was  the  vigour  and  discipline  of  their  ar- 
mies, that  one  of  these  strong  fortresses,  for 
such  the  camp  might  be  styled,  could  be  con- 
structed by  them  in  a  few  hours'  time.  When 
their  camp  was  to  be  abandoned,  the  soldiers 
would  load  themselves  with  their  armour,  kitchen 
furniture,  and  provisions  for  many  days,  and 
with  such  incumbrance,  would  march  twenty 
miles  in  six  hours. 

From  various  facts,  it  is  evident  that  the  Ro- 
mans were  men  of  great  bodily  strength  and  acti- 
vity ;    they  were   accustomed    to    running    an* 


236  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

leaping  in  full  armour,  which,  Dr.  Gibbon  re 
marks,  a  modern  soldier  could  scarcely  carry. 
But  in  modern  armies  athletic  exercises  are  too 
much  neglected.  The  cultivation  of  these  would 
give  soldiers  a  great  advantage  in  battle.  Q,uintus 
Curtius  relates  an  anecdote  of  one  of  the  athletce  in 
Alexander's  army,  who  challenged  a  soldier  of 
uncommon  strength  and  vigour,  to  a  single  com- 
bat. The  soldier  was  to  be  clad  in  complete  ar- 
mour, with  helmet,  breast-plate,  coat  of  mail, 
sword  and  spear,  and  the  athleta  was  to  be 
naked,  with  only  a  common  walking-stick  in  his 
hand. 

Alexander,  who  was  fond  of  every  display  of 
dexterity,  determined  to  see  the  combat,  and 
ordered  them  to  fight  before  the  army.  At  the 
time  appointed,  the  antagonists  appeared,  and 
made  ready  to  begin  the  conflict  at  the  word 
of  the  king.  Every  body  trembled  for  the 
wrestler,  who  appeared  naked  and  unprotect- 
ed, save  by  his  little  stick.  The  soldier  ap- 
peared stern  and  very  terrible,  brandishing  a 
glittering  spear,  and  rough  with  iron.  The  sol- 
dier flung  bis  spear,  which  the  other  avoided  by 
a  sudden  inclination  of  his  body.  The  athleta, 
from  a  great  distance,  sprang  upon  his  enemy, 
and,  with  one  bound,  passed  almost  directly  over 
the  head  of  the  stern  warrior,  giving  him  a  severe 
blow  either  with  hand  or  foot,  and  it  could  scarce- 
ly be  distinguished  with  which.  The  enraged 
champion  suddenly  turned  about  to  see  where 
his  enemy  was,  who  again  approached,  and  with 
a  blow  of  his  rod  knocked  down  his  armed  foe, 
sprung  upon  him,  and  would  have  killed  him,  but 
the  king,  loth  to  lose  so  good  a  soldier,  put  an 
end  to  the  combat.  The  battle  drew  on  the 
soldier  who  was  defeated,  so  much  ridicule,  and 


ROME.  237 

he  was  so  slung  with  the  attention  the  king 
paid  to  the  wrestler,  that  he  killed  himself  in 
rage  and  vexation.  Courage,  strength,  and  acti- 
vity are  a  soldier's  best  weapons,  in  the  mo- 
ments of  close  engagement ;  with  these  he  will 
be  formidable,  let  his  weapons  be  what  they  may. 
In  an  army,  not  only  exercises  properly  mili- 
tary, should  be  regularly  performed,  but  every 
other  athletic  exercise,  where  strength  and  acti- 
vity are  requisite. 

The  Roman  republic  was  adorned  with  many 
distinguished  men,  who  shone  with  no  less  lustre 
as  patriots  than  as  warriors.  Cincinnatus,  Cori- 
olanus,  Camillus,  and  Fabricius.,  exhibited  the 
character  of  the  patriot  in  a  light  which,  perhaps, 
has  no  parallel  in  history. 

Fifty  years  after  the  expulsion  of  Tarquin,  the 
Roman  people  had  fallen  into  political  dissen- 
sions, which  threatened  the  existence  of  the  re- 
public. Invaded  by  the  Equi  and  Volsci,  their 
army  was  defeated,  and  the  fierce  disputes  which 
agitated  the  state,  had  paralized  all  their  exer- 
tions, and  rendered  them  a  prey  to  those  nations 
over  whom  they  had  often  triumphed.  Quintus 
Cincinnatus  lived  retired,  on  a  little  farm  of  four 
acres  of  land,  from  which,  by  his  own  labour  and 
industry,  he  maintained  his  family.  A  rage  for 
office,  and  the  more  than  madness  with  which 
offices  are  bestowed  on  the  vilest  miscreants  in 
society,  is  the  plague  and  torment,  the  ruin  and 
perdition,  of  all  republics. 

Cincinnatus,  sickened  with  a  scene  So  shocking 
and  disgustful  to  a  great  and  generous  spirit,  pre- 
ferred to  live  in  retirement  and  poverty.  But  in 
the  last  exigence  of  public  calamity,  the  senate 
appointed  him  dictator,  which  office  comprehend- 
ed all  the  powers  of  absolute  sovereignty.     The 


238  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

Romans  had  not  become  so  blind,  as  to  prefet  im- 
mediate and  entire  destruction,  to  tiie  government 
of  a  wise  and  honest  man. 

Cincinnatus  assumed  the  government  of  the 
state  and  army,  and  marching  out  against  the 
Equi  and  Volsci,  defeated  them,  and  returned  to 
Rome  in  triumph,  bringing  spoils  of  immense 
value,  which  he  had  taken  in  the  war.  It  would 
be  natural  to  suppose,  that  Cincinnatus  took  care 
to  make  his  own  fortune,  when  he  had  freed  the 
state  from  danger,  and  filled  her  coffers  from  the 
spoils  of  an  enemy.  According  to  the  laws  of 
Rome,  he  had  a  right  to  a  large  share  in  the  trea- 
sures which  he  acquired.  But  this  great  man  re- 
stored to  the  public  treasure  what  he  had  a  right 
to  keep,  and  returned  to  the  cultivation  of  his  lit- 
tle farm,  which  he  declared  was  sufficient  for  hi'S 
subsistence 

The  story  of  the  illustrious  Camillas  still  more 
clearly  exhibited  the  strong  traits  of  patriotic  vir- 
tue. By  a  blamciess  life,  and  the  most  important 
services  to  his  country,  he  had  acquired  greater 
reputation  than  any  other  man  in  the  state.  His 
virtues,  so  far  from  securing  him  from  the  envy 
and  malice  of  enemies,  raised  against  liim  a  storm 
of  persecution  which  nothing  could  resist.  He 
was  banished  from  his  country,  and  driven  into 
disgraceful  exile 

The  cruelty  and  ingratitude  of  his  countrymen 
did  not  alienate  his  affection.  When  he  had  re- 
mained some  time  in  banishment,  he  heard  that 
Rome  was  besieged  by  Brennus,  king  of  the 
Gauls,  who,  having  vanquished  whatever  force 
he  found  to  oppose  his  progress  in  the  field,  had 
closely  invested  the  city,  and  threatened  its  utter 
destruction.  This  Brennus.  next  to  Hannibal, 
was  the  most  dangerous  enemy  Rome  ever  had. 


ROME.  239 

A  collection  of  the  Gallic  tribes  had  crossed  the 
Alps,  and  effected  a  settlement  at  the  foot  of  those 
mountains,  on  the  Italian  side.  Thej  were  thence 
called  Cisalpine  Gauls,  and  had  been  gaining 
ground  in  that  region  for  many  years.  Brennus, 
a  very  warlike  prince,  was  willing  to  make  war 
on  the  Romans,  and  had  invested  Clusium,  a  city 
of  Tuscany,  in  alliance  with  the  Roman  state. 

The  Roman  senate,  on  so  near  an  approach  of 
this  formidable  chieftain,  sent  an  embassy  to  de- 
mand his  reasons  for  invading  that  city.  Bren- 
nus haughtily  answered,  that  the  right  of  valiant 
men  lay  in  their  swords.  And  suddenly  raising 
the  siege  of  Clusium,  he  marched  with  haste  to- 
wards Rome,  and  defeated  a  Roman  army  thrown 
in  his  way.  On  approaching  the  city,  such  was 
the  consternation  of  the  inhabitants,  that  many 
fled  to  neighbouring  cities  to  escape  the  storm  ; 
and  the  remnant,  a  few  of  the  bravest  and  most 
determined  spirits,  took  refuge  in  the  capitol,  a 
fortress  of  great  strength,  and  prepared  to  stand 
the  fury  of  a  siege. 

The  Roman  state  now  seemed  nearer  extinc- 
tion than  it  ever  did,  till  taken  by  Alaric,  king  of 
the  Goths,  many  centuries  afterwards.  Yet  the 
fortunes  of  this  brave  people  prevailed,  and  were 
able  to  repel  the  storm.  No  vestige  of  the  Ro- 
man state  now  remained  but  the  capitol  ;  the 
Gauls  had  full  possession  of  the  city,  which  they 
had  plundered,  and,  in  a  great  measure,  burnt  to 
the  ground.  Such  an  occasion  as  does  not  occur 
in  many  ages,  was  now  offered  to  a  man  to  dis- 
play the  soldier  and  patriot. 

Camillus,  still  in  exile,  was  informed  of  the 
perilous  state  to  which  his  country  was  reduced. 
The  fame  of  his  virtues  and  talents  enabled  him 
*o  collect  a  small  army  of  such  men  as  are  al- 


240  ANCIENT  HISTORV. 

ways  to  be  found  ready  to  embark  in  a  new  en- 
terprize.  As  be  drew  near  the  Roman  territories 
his  former  friends  flocked  to  his  standard,  and  his 
army  became  sufficiently  powerful  to  attack  the 
Gallic  monarch.  The  Gauls  were  defeated,  and 
cut  in  pieces,  almost  to  a  man.  Camillus  entered 
Rome  in  triumph,  and  delivered  his  country  from 
this  dangerous  enemy,  and  acquired  the  honour- 
able title  of  the  second  founder  of  the  Roman 
state. 

From  a  depression  so  deep  and  alarming,  this 
astonishing  people  immediately  rose  more  war- 
like, more  formidable,  more  fortunate.  An  event, 
however,  of  a  very  different  character,  about  this 
time,  laid  more  strongly  the  foundation  of  the 
state,  and  evinced  a  capacity  for  legislation,  as 
well  as  for  the  tumultuous  and  sanguinary  scenes 
of  war.  Some  time  after  the  adoption  of  the 
republican  form  of  government,  tribunes  of  the 
people,  as  they  were  called,  were  created.  They 
bore  some  resemblance  to  the  ephori  in  Sparta, 
and  were  considered  as  the  immediate  guardians 
of  the  people.  The  tribunes  held  a  seat  near  the 
doors  of  the  senate-house,  and  were  occasionally 
called  in  to  deliberate,  and  ratify  the  laws  of  the 
senate  and  consuls. 

The  tribunes,  by  professing  to  advocate  the 
cause  of  the  people,  and  to  resist  the  aggressions 
of  the  senate  and  consuls,  were  always  tumultu- 
ary and  violent,  often  infringed,  and  at  last  over- 
turned the  government  of  the  state,  and  destroyed 
the  liberties  of  Rome,  in  the  perpetual  dictator- 
ship of  Sylla.  Sixty  years  after  the  republic 
began,  the  different  orders  of  the  state  had  be- 
come so  hostile  to  each  other,  and  tumults  and 
seditions  become  so  frequent  and  fierce,  that  the 


ROME.  241 

wisdom  and  talents  of  Cincinnatus  saved  the  state 
from  ruin. 

To  remedy  these  evils",  this  magnanimous  peo- 
ple adopted  a  measure  which  shows  them  supe- 
rior to  their  condition  and  state  of  improvement 
as  barbarians.  They  determined  to  introduce  a 
body  of  written  laws,  of  which  hitherto  thej  had 
been  wholly  destitute  ;  nor  was  the  mode  they 
adopted  to  procure  these  laws  less  to  their  honour 
than  the  laws  themselves. 

Posthuraius,  Sulpicius,  and  Blanlius,  three 
senators  of  distinguished  rank  and  great  wisdom, 
were  sent  on  a  solemn  embassy  to  visit  the  states 
of  Greece,  examine  their  laws,  and  from  them 
to  select  a  code  adopted  to  the  Roman  state  and 
government.  After  a  year*s  diligent  inquiry, 
they  returned,  and  reported  the  result  of  their 
researches  into  the  most  celebrated  systems  of 
Greece.  These  laws  were  digested  into  ten 
tables ;  and  two  others  being  added  some  time 
after,  formed  the  truly  famous  twelve  tables  of 
Roman  laws. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted,  that  the  laws  of  the 
twelve  tables  did  not  survive  the  ages  of  gothic 
darkness  ;  together  with  many  other  monuments 
of  ancient  learning  and  wisdom,  they  perished 
in  the  general  wreck  of  intelligence,  literature, 
and  genius  ;  and  we  can  judge  of  their  excellence 
by  a  few  fragments  only  which  remain. 

The  Roman  government,  notwithstanding  these 
tumults  and  contentions,  did  not  become  funda- 
mentally corrupt  till  some  time  after  the  fall  of 
Carthage.  Plutarch  informs  us  that  money  was 
not  distributed  at  elections  in  Rome,  till  near  the 
time  of  Julius  Caesar,  and  that  disgraceful  prac- 
tice did  not  begin  in  Greece  till  about  the  close 
of  the  Peloponnesian  war. 
21 


242  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

The  cities  in  the  middle  parts  of  Italy  had  ge- 
nerally fallen  under  tl^e  power  of  Rome  ;  the 
triumph  overBrennus  extended  their  territories  far 
north  ;  the  war  of  the  Samnites  next  occupied 
the  arms  of  the  republic  in  the  south,  and  the 
reduction  of  this  warlike  people  cost  the  Romans 
a  great  and  protracted  effort.  When  it  was  well 
nigh  terminated,  an  enemy  appeared,  before 
whom  it  was  expected  the  Roman  commonwealth 
would  fall  an  easy  victim.  From  the  ruins  of  the 
Grecian  republics,  the  history  of  these  times  was 
adorned  with  one  great  commander.  Pyrrhus,  a 
prince  of  Epirus,  when  very  young,  was  de- 
livered as  an  hostage  to  Ptolemy  king  of  Egypt. 
Here  he  soon  began  to  evince  that  excellence  of 
mind,  and  greatness  of  character,  which  raised 
him  to  a  fame  little  inferior  to  that  of  Alex= 
ander. 

Pyrrhus  found  his  native  country  in  the  utmost 
disorder,  and  his  paternal  dominions  usurped  by 
the  kings  of  iMacedon.  He  soon  seated  himself 
on  the  throne  of  his  ancestors,  and  had  he  not 
turned  his  arms  towards  Italy,  he  probably  would 
never  have  found  his  equal.  Formed  as  a  general 
on  the  maxims  of  Epimanondas  and  Alexander, 
he  partook  of  the  excellencies,  and  was  free  from 
some  of  the  faults,  of  both.  The  Samnites  ap- 
plied to  Pyrrhus,  and  little  doubt  was  enter- 
tained, that  by  the  skill  and  fortunes  of  that  ac- 
complished warrior,  they  would  be  more  than  a 
match  for  the  Romans.  But  their  conflict  was 
with  fortune  still  superior. 

Pyrrhus  accepted  the  invitation,  and  prepared 
to  cross  from  Epirus  over  into  Italy,  with  an  ar- 
mament which  he  judged  sufficient,  according  to 
the  Roman  phrase,  to  give  peace  to  Italy.  But, 
)0n  his  passage,  his  armament  was  greatly  injured 


hy  a  storm,  and  his  force  reduced  to  near  half  its 
original  size.  Confident,  however,  in  his  superior 
skill,  he  landed  in  th*^  south  of  Italj,  and  found  a 
Roman  army  ready  to  receive  him.  This  was 
the  first  conflict  which  the  Romans  had  with  a 
foreign  enemy,  and  is  remarkable  for  being  the 
first  time  the  Grecian  phalanx  was  brought  to  act 
against  the  Roman  legion.  The  Romans  fought 
with  great  bravery,  but  were  overpowered  by  the 
skill  and  valour  of  Pyrrhus,  who,  on  this  occa- 
sion, made  that  memorable  declaration,  so  often 
quoted  on  similar  occasions.  When  he  vvas  com- 
plimented on  his  victory  over  the  Romans,  he 
lifted  up  his  hand  and  exclaimed,  "  Another  such 
a  victory  will  ruin  me." 

Pyrrhus  soon  discovered  his  force  insufficient 
to  contend  successfully  with  Rome.  He  return- 
ed to  Greece,  under  pretence  of  raising  a  great 
army,  but  he  never  visited  Italy  again,  where  he 
iound  a  nation  whom  neither  eloquence  could  per- 
suade, gold  corrupt,  nor  skill  and  power  over- 
come. It  is  the  general  opinion  of  ancient  wri- 
ters, that  Alexander,  had  he  entered  Italy,  would 
have  experienced  the  foriune  of  Pyrrtius.  But 
Alexander  judged  better  than  to  attempt  an  im- 
pression on  Italy,  or  to  face  the  Romans,  who, 
hardy  as  his  own  Macedonians  were,  were  still 
more  hardy  and  robust  than  they,  and  who,  if 
conquered,  had  neither  gold  nor  wealth  to  glut 
the  rapacity  of  a  conqueror. 

From  the  war  of  Pyrrhus,  the  Roman  state 
laid  off  her  armour,  in  the  proud  attitude  of  con- 
quest and  triumpho  All  Italy  was  clear  ;  the  im- 
mense peninsula,  from  the  Alps  to  the  Sicilian 
strait,  was  now  an  integral  part  of  the  dominion 
of  the  republic.  And,  by  a  policy  as  liberal  as 
profound,   the    conquered  nations  of  Italy  were 


iZ-14  ANCIE^'T    HISTORY. 

soon  amalgamated  to  a  solid  mass  of  empire,  com- 
prising ten  millions  of  people.  They  were  no 
longer  nations  in  alliance,  but  one  people,  wrought 
into  a  uniform  fabric  of  power.  The  Romans, 
in  the  early  state  of  the  republic,  were  as  mild 
and  v/ise  to  nations  they  had  conquered,  as  they 
were  stern  and  terrible  to  their  enemies  ;  (1  speak 
of  the  conquests  in  Italy  ;)  but  they  were,  in 
every  period  of  their  state,  a  military  government. 
Every  citizen  was  a  soldier,  and  every  soldier 
was  a  man  of  rank. 

Tullus  Hostillus  had  divided  the  citizens  of 
Rome  into  five  classes,  according  to  the  amount 
of  their  property.  From  these  classes,  the  sol- 
diers who  composed  the  armies  of  the  state,  were 
drawn.  From  these  classes,  the  great  mass  of  the 
lowest  order  of  people  was  totally  excluded  ;  and 
they  were  more  numerous  than  all  the  five  classes 
together.  Caius  Marius  was  the  first  Roman  com- 
mander who  enlisted  the  lowest  class  of  men  in- 
to the  Roman  army.  This  class  were  generally 
menial  servants,  yet  their  number  was  so  very 
great,  that  several  times  they  revolted  and  rose 
in  rebellion,  and  once  had  like  to  have  overturn- 
ed the  state.  And  those  powerful  men,  who 
finally  subverted  the  government,  did  it  by  drawr 
ing  those  people  into  their  service. 

But,  at  first,  the  Roman  citizens  and  soldiers 
were  patriots.  War  was  their  occupation,  and 
they  composed  a  nobler  army  than  any  other  na- 
tion could  boast  of.  They  were  not  drawn  from 
the  common  sewers  of  the  state,  but  from  the  no- 
blest and  choicest  spirits  of  the  free  citizens  of 
Rome.  When  at  home,  their  civil  and  municipal 
laws  generally  breathed  the  spirit  of  equity  and 
justice.  The  laws  of  the  twelve  tables,  as  far  as 
we  can  judge  of  them  from  the  fragments  that  re- 


ROM£,  245 

main,  were  a  surprising  fabric  of  civil  and  muni- 
cipal jurisprudence.  What  is  remarkable,  some 
of  their  precepts  were  almost,  word  for  word,  pre- 
cepts of  the  law  of  Moses.  If  Lelex,  the  founder 
of  the  Spartan  commonwealth,  was  a  Hebrew,  it 
is  not  improbable  that  many  of  the  Spartan  laws 
were  from  the  Mosaic  code.  It  is  certain  that 
the  division  of  the  lands  by  Lycurgus  resembled 
the  distribution  of  the  land  of  Canaan,  among  the 
tribes  of  Israel  by  Joshua. 

The  first  Roman  character,  though  not  remark- 
able for  traits  of  beauty,  exhibited  an  outline  of 
boldness  and  grandeur  to  which  no  other  nation 
has  an  equal  claim.  They  had  more  gravity, 
and  more  sincerity  than  the  Greeks,  and  were 
less  inclined  to  cruelty,  though  more  ambitious 
and  addicted  to  war,  for  the  sake  of  conquest  and 
dominion.  Till  the  time  of  Alexander,  the  great- 
*:St  wars  of  the  Greeks  were  obviously  defensive  ; 
those  of  the  Romans,  for  conquest. 

After  the  expulsion  of  Pyrrhus  from  Italy,  the 
Roman  state  stood  collected  in  its  strength,  and 
for  a  while  it  remained  uncertain  towards  what 
object,  or  in  what  direction,  her  vast  power  would 
act.  There  seemed  little  opportunity,  and  still 
less  provocation,  for  them  to  break  out  in  any  dis- 
tant enterprise.  Transalpine  Gaul,  now  called 
France,  was  separated  from  them  by  the  Alps, 
over  whose  snowy  summits,  and  pathless  defiles, 
if  they  passed,  the  Gauls  were  numerous  and 
powerful,  but  poor — the  war  would  be  dange- 
rous, and  victory  without  reward.  The  island 
o(  Sicily  lay  west,  but  this  was  a  seat  of  the  se- 
verest wars,  where  the  powerful  armaments  of 
the  Greeks  and  Carthaginians  had  often  been  de- 
feated and  destroyed.  East  of  Italy  lay  Greece, 
yet  powerful  and  warlike  j  while  Africa,  Spain, 
21"^ 


246  AN'CIENT  HISTORY. 

the  islands  and  seas,  were  occupied  by  the  Car- 
thaginians, whose  commerce  engrossed  the  wealth 
of  the  world,  and  whose  fleets  gave  law  to  the 
ocean. 

It  was  for  the  Romans  to  invade  Greece  or 
Carthage  ;  for  by  these  two  powers  they  were 
environed  on  three  sides,  and  by  the  fierce  and 
hostile  nations  of  Gaul  and  Germany,  on  the  other. 
They  chose  Carthage,  which  they  judged  the 
easier  task.  The  result  was,  the  most  protract- 
ed and  vigorous  conflict  recorded  in  ancient  his- 
torj^ 

A  view  of  this  memorable  war  was  given  in  our 
last  lecture.  At  the  close  of  the  Punic  wars, 
when  a  rival  power  no  longer  existed,  we  see 
Rome  at  her  utmost  period  of  vigour ;  but  it  is 
painful  to  reflect,  that  every  step  of  her  progress 
was  marked  with  blood.  But  while  the  philan- 
thropist sees  much  to  deplore,  the  historian  anc^ 
philosopher  will  find  much  to  admire  and  applaud, 
and  must  allow  the  Romans  to  have  been  tke  most 
powerful  and  warlike  of  the  ancient  nations. 
No  nation  embraced  a  more  wide  and  extensive 
range  of  character.  Where  shall  we  look  for 
greater  splendour  of  talents  than  in  Cicero — for 
more  patriotism  than  in  Cato — for  more  bravery 
than  in  Ceesar— for  a  ixiore  illustrious  female  than 
Lucretia  ? 


:247 


LECTURE  XI. 


Rome. — continued. 

The  fall  of  Carthage,  which  took  pla.ce  143 
years  before  the  christian  tera,  was  the  first  event 
which  visibly  changed  the  character,  and  impaired 
the  morals  of  the  Roman  people.  This  had 
been  predicted,  in  reply  to  Cato,  who  used  to 
close  all  his  speeches,  in  the  senate  with 
*'  Delenda  est  Carthago.''^  "  Carthage  must  be 
destroyed.-'  Scipio,  on  the  contrary,  insisted  that 
the  fall  of  Carthage,  would  inflict  on  Rome  an 
irreparable  injury.  His  prediction  proved  true, 
^nd,  indeed,  fell  far  short  of  the  truth.  The 
^amazing  wealth  of  Carthage  introduced  into 
Rome  a  style  of  luxury  unknown  in  any  former 
'period.  Together  with  that,  ambition  of  a  new 
5brm  soon  began  to  exhibit  features  of  an  alarming 
i:haracter.  The  direct  collision  and  open  hostili- 
ty of  parties  were  soothed  and  silenced  by  deep 
ii'itrigue,  and  crafty  management.  Men  of  enter- 
p  rise,  versed  in  the  arts  of  Grecian  policy,  from 
tlie  courts  of  Asia,  and  from  the  scenes  of 
African  wealth  and  splendor,  poured  into  Rome  a 
torrent  of  poison,  and  fraught  with  more  diseases 
ll  lan  Pandora's  box. 

From  Carthage  alone  more  than  two  thousand 
tons  of  silver  and  gold  was  brought  to  the  trea- 
s.ury  of  Rome,  and  a  booty  of  equal  value 
Tplundered  from  other  cities,  Sicily,  and  the 
.islands.     Marcellus,   who  conquered  Sicily,  and 


248  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

brought  the  spoils  of  Syracuse,  and  many  other 
opulent  cities  to  Rome,  is  said  to  have  been  the 
first  who  introduced  foreign  luxuries  into  the 
Roman  capital.  There  was  still  so  much  virtue 
remaining  in  the  city  that  Marcellus  was  im- 
peached, and  tried  for  his  life  before  the  people. 
The  Sicilians  complained  of  him  for  making 
w^arwith  their  gods,  and  plundering  their  temples; 
and  the  Konians  accused  him  of  destroying  the 
industry  of  the  people,  and  impairing  the  virtue 
of  the  state,  by  altering  the  style  of  living,  and 
filling  the  city  with  shows  and  curiosities  which 
diverted  the  laboring  classes  of  people  from  their 
work. 

Marcellus  was  acquitted,  and  no  prosecution  of 
this  nature  was  ever  more  set  on  foot  in  Rome  ; 
for  on  the  fall  of  Carthage,  Italy  itself  was 
almost  inundated  with  the  means  of  luxury,  and 
dazzled  with  the  splendours  of  wealth.  The 
great  men  of  Rome  now  possessed  wealth,  which 
tliey  associated  with  the  idea  of  power;  and  a 
scene  was  passing  in  Greece,  separated  from 
them  only  by  a  narrow  sea,  which  taught  them 
how  to  climb  to  that  elevated  summit.  The 
virtue  of  the  Grecian  republics  was  now  for 
ever  extinct,  and  Greece  presented  nothing  but  a 
variegated  sceje  of  tyranny,  disorder,  and  misery. 
The  art  of  acquiring*  popularity,  and  of  gaining 
the  suffrages  and  services  of  the  great  mass  of  the 
people,  was  now  the  grand  study  at  Rome— the 
lesson  had  been  learnt  in  Greece.  When  men 
of  the  most  integrity  and  virtue  are  most  populai; 
in  any  country,  the  people  of  that  country  may- 
be called  a  wise  and  virtuous  people.  And  the 
character  of  a  nation  may  be  known  by  ih^ 
character  of  the  men  whom  they  choose  to  rule 
over  them. 


ROME.  249 

It  is  the  disease  and  calamity  of  free  govern- 
ments that  men  of  the  most  art,  intrigue,  and 
ambition  will  acquire  the  reins  of  government. 
They  leave  no  means  untried,  they  stop  at  no 
expedient,  and  they  never  fail,  at  last,  to  accom- 
plish their  end.  When  their  ambition  is  gratified, 
the  nation  over  whose  virtue  they  triumph  is 
ruined,  and  sinks  deep  in  destruction.  It  is 
owing  to  the  force  of  this  maxim  that  there  is  not 
a  free  government  on  earth  but  our  own.  Had 
it  not  been  for  this,  the  Roman  republic  might 
have  existed  till  this  day,  free,  powerful,  and 
happy,  the  ornament,  the  admiration,  the  envy 
of  the  world. 

From  the  conquest  of  Carthage  to  the  birth  of 
Christ,  the  Roman  history  may  be  divided  into 
four  parts  : 

1.  The  conquest  of  Greece. 

2.  The  conquest  of  Asia. 

3.  The  conquest  of  Europe. 

4.  The  civil  wars. — Though  these  events  did 
not  succeed  one  another  exactly  in  this  order; 
being  in  some  measure  blended,  and  anticipating 
one  another,  yet  this  order  rather  prevailed  than 
any  different  order. 

The  Romans  having  seized  the  immense  do- 
minions of  Carthage,  and  being  already  masters 
of  Numidia,  by  the  will  of  Massinissa,  they  now 
held  all  the  north  of  Africa  except  Egypt.  They 
were  masters  of  the  islands  of  the  Mediterranean, 
of  Sicily,  and  of  Spain  ;  though  Spain  required 
to  be  conquered  a  second  time,  and  when  defend- 
ed by  the  arms  •  of  the  brave  and  generous 
Sertorius,  they  cost  the  Romans  an  effort  of 
fourteen  years.  But  Egypt,  under  the  Ptolemies, 
was  still  powerful,  and  a  war  in  Europe  was 
preferred  to  another  in  Africa. 


250  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

The  successors  of  Alexander,  reigning  over 
Macedonia  and  Greece,  by  their  weakness,  im- 
policy, and  vice,  held  out  the  signal  of  attack^ 
and  the  republic  of  Rome  poured  her  conquering 
legions  into  that  devoted  country.  Though 
some  of  the  Roman  writers  pretend  this  was  a 
greater  war  than  the  Punic,  it  could  certainly  be 
so  only  in  name.  For  among  all  the  successors 
of  Alexander,  in  Macedon,  Syria,  and  Egypt, 
there  seems  to  have  been  but  one  great  man  who 
deserved  a  place  in  the  first  class  of  heroes  and 
statesmen ;  that  was  Pyrrhus,  king  of  Epirus, 
who  could  not  contend  with  the  Romans. 

The  four  immediate  successors  of  Alexander, 
Cassander,  Lysimachus,  Seleucus,  and  Ptolemy, 
were  men  of  vigorous  talents,  and  trained  by 
Philip  and  Alexander,  they  were  by  no  means 
dull  scholars  in  the  art  of  war  ;  and  Ptolemy  evin- 
ced great  talents  as  a  statesman,  and  great  merit 
as  a  monarch.  Indeed,  I  have  elsewhere  re- 
marked, that  the  Grecian  dynasty  of  Egyptian 
princes,  under  the  name  of  Ptolemy,  were  the 
ablest  princes  which  ever  governed  Egypt ;  and 
as  far  as  long  reigns  and  regular  successions  indi- 
cate the  wisdom  of  a  government,  and  happiness 
of  a  nation,  the  Ptolemies  must  hold  a  high  rank 
in  an  estimate  of  ancient  monarchs.  They  were 
certainly  the  last  branch  of  Alexander's  empire 
which  fell  before  the  Romans. 

In  Macedon  and  Greece,  the  government  was 
like  the  troubled  ocean.  Conspiracy,  treason ^ 
revolution,  and  bloodshed,  soon  left  them  without 
powerj  and  when  invaded  by  the  Roman  armies, 
there  was  not  sufficient  faith  and  virtu<2  in  the  na- 
tion to  maintain  the  unequal  struggle  with  Ro- 
man bravery  and  discipline.  Paulus  Emillius, 
the  adopted  son  of  Scipio,  who  conquered  Car- 


ROMi:.  251 

ihage,  led  Perseus,  king  of  Macedon,  in  triumph 
to  Rome  ;  and  Macedonia,  and  all  Greece,  and  the 
neighbouring  states,  received  the  Roman  yoke. 

It  is  amazing  and  incredible  what  changes  a 
few  years  produce  in  the  temper,  character,  and 
habits  of  a  nation.  The  Greeks  were  now  as 
pusillanimous  and  base  as  they  were  brave  and 
magnanimous  in  the  days  of  Themistocles.  The 
progress  of  the  Roman  arms  through  these  once 
warlike  states  cannot  be  read  but  with  sensations 
of  pain  and  disgust.  Some  of  them  yielded  even 
without  a  struggle  ;  choosing,  probably,  to  change 
masters  at  as  cheap  a  rate  as  possible. 

When  1  remember  what  Greece  was  in  the 
times  of  Solon  and  Lycurgus — when  I  see  Leoni- 
das  with  300  men,  whose  bodies  were  clad  in 
steel,  and  vt^hose  souls  were  like  so  many  bright 
flames  of  courage  and  love  of  glory,  moving  to 
meet  Xerxes  at  the  head  of  his  five  millions — and 
but  a  few  years  after,  see  a  Roman  army  travers- 
ing all  Greece,  with  little  or  no  resistance — de- 
molishing their  walls — plundering  their  cities — 
giving  law  to  a  timorous,  degraded,  submissive 
race  of  people — I  cannot  but  mourn  the  vicissi- 
tude of  human  affairs,  and  the  fading  glory  of 
earthly  things. 

In  the  history  of  the  world,  an  empire  is  but  a 
bubble  :  it  is  reared  with  toil  and  ambition — it 
rises  on  the  ruins  of  other  institutions  like  itself — 
it  becomes  the  sport  of  passion-— its  foundations 
are  dissolved,  and  it  sinks  in  a  deluge  of  blood ! 
One  would  be  ready  to  conclude  that  Rome,  after 
the  conquest  of  Carthage  and  Greece,  was  free 
from  trouble ;  that  Italy  presented  a  scene  of 
glory  and  felicity,  without  a  tempest,  and  without 
a  cloud.  The  reduction  of  Greece  was  an  sera  of 
importance  in  the  Roman  history ;  but  was  not 


^52  AN'CrENT  iiisroHY. 

the  sera  of  hcv  happiness.  That  period,  if  such 
31)  one  ever  existed,  was  long  past. 

To  judge  of  the  happiness  of  a  nation,  or  of  an 
individual,  by  power  and  splendour  of  rank,  is  to 
adopt  an  erroneous  ground  of  judging.  The 
throned  monarch  might  often  envy  the  happiness 
of  his  meanest  slave  ;  and  whilst  an  empire  gives 
law  to  many  nations,  and  the  terror  of  its  name  is 
universal,  it  may  be  one  wide  scene  of  misery. 
This  was  the  condition  of  Rome,  after  she  rose 
to  the  height  of  power. 

It  is  impossible  to  determine  how  far  the  intro- 
duction of  Grecian  literature  was  beneficial  to  the 
Roman  people.  It  is  even  difficult  to  discover, 
what  proportion  of  the  entire  people  of  Italy 
were  able  to  read  and  w^rite,  or  how  far  the  asra 
of  Grecian  literature  influenced  their  condition* 
If  their  taste  was  improved,  their  manners  soften- 
ed, and  their  general  character  made  more  pleas* 
ing,  yet,  the  introduction  of  the  fine  arts,  the  in- 
fluence of  wealth,  and  the  vast  prevalence  of  lux- 
ury, wrought  a  fatal  change  on  their  morality  ; 
and,  while  it  enabled  one  part  of  society  to  spread 
the  snare,  it  prepared  and  disposed  the  other  part 
to  rush  into  it.  By  whatever  means  a  part  of 
society  become  very  opulent,  by  the  same  means 
a  far  greater  number  will  become  dependent, 
poor,  and  dissolute. 

Victories,  triumphs,  luxury,  idleness,  ease,  and 
elegance,  filled  Rome  and  all  Italy  with  millions  of 
wretches,  abandoned  of  all  principles  of  virtue, 
seeking  for  pleasure  through  riot,  indulgence,  and 
wickedness  ;  trained  in  the  school  of  vice,  and  apt 
at  every  crime  and  atrocity,  perpetrated  through 
dark  intrigue,  or  public  tumult.  With  the  litera- 
ture, policy,  and  arts  of  Greece,  the  multitude  of 
characters  pf  this  cast,  very  numerous  before,  be- 


ROME,  253^ 

eajne  immense  and  overwhelming.  The  descend- 
ants of  the  ancient  Romans  were  few,  in  compari- 
son with  them  ;  and  of  that  few,  the  greater  part 
were  wholly  corrupted  by  riches,  pleasure  and 
ambition.  They  united  their  utmost  efforts  to 
make  a  thorough  and  perfect  extermination  of  all 
that  remained  of  ancient  Roman  virtue.  They 
succeeded  but  too  completely. 

Talents  and  virtue  had  ceased  to  be  considered 
the  requisites  for  the   great    ofiices  of  the  state  ; 
and  among  the  popular  arts  by  which  the  suffrages 
of  the  people  were  to  be  obtained,  feasts,  enter- 
tainments, public  shows,  andlargesses    were  now 
constantly  resorted    to.     Happj'    would  it    have 
been  for  the  Rom.an  people,    had    these  been  the 
only    measures   used  to  gain   the   favour  of  the 
public.      From   these   base  measures    they    pro- 
ceeded   to    others,     far    more    criminal.     They 
drew  the  powers  of  legislation  into  their  service, 
and  every  law  that  was  passed  was  directed  with 
a  perpetual  aim  to  some  popular  interest.     Laws 
were  no  longer  formed  for  the  good  of  the  nation, 
but  to  gratify  the  views   of  aspiring  men.     But 
the  fate  of  all  republics  has  been  uniform.     Men 
of  unshaken  integrity,    who  will  not  flatter  and 
deceive,   are    branded  with  the  odious  epithet  of 
tyrants,  and  enemies  to  the  people,  while  a  race 
of  harpies,  setting  themselves  up  as  the  friends  of 
the  people,  and  as  the  guardians  of  civil  liberty, 
have  usurped  all  power,  and  plunged  their  coun- 
try in  destruction. 

The  theatre  of  war  and  conquest  was  still  wide. 
The  kingdoms  of  Syria  and  Egypt — a  wide 
territory  expanding  from  the  Black  Sea  through 
Asia  Minor,  through  Palestine,  and  into  Egypt, 
still  invited  the  Roman  standard,  and  promised 
more  wealth,  and  more  triumphs.  The  eager 
22 


254  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

pursuit  of  these  objects  still  delayed  for  a  while 
the  catastrophe  of  Roman  liberty,  and  did  not 
allow  the  demasjogues  of  Rome  to  forge,  nor  the 
people  to  rivet,  the  chains  of  complete  and  abso- 
lute despotism. 

The  kingdom  of  Syria  fell  first.  From  the 
times  of  Hannibal,  the  fatal  blow  had  been  struck 
to  that  tottering  fabric  of  power.  Hannibal,  as 
noticed  in  a  former  lecture,  when  he  saw  his  own 
country  no  longer  able  to  contend  with  Rome, 
applied  to  Antiochus,  king  of  Syria,  offered  him 
his  services,  and  projected  the  plan  of  a  w^ar 
ao-ainst  the  Romans,  which  under  his  own  warlike 
genius  might  have  been  successful.  But  Antio- 
chus, though  the  advice  of  Hannibal  was  evi- 
dently sound  and  correct,  took  directly  the  op- 
posite course.  As  a  warrior,  he  was  indeed  the 
antipode  of  Hannibal,  and  the  result  of  his  own 
miserable  project  speaks  the  panegyric  of  Han- 
nibal's advice.  Antiochus  was  jealous  of  the 
fame  of  the  Carthaginian,  and,  fearing  that  the 
plan  projected  by  him  would  redound  more  to  his 
credit  than  to  his  own,  he  rejected  his  advice. 

Instead  of  making  a  descent  on  Italy,  as  Han- 
nibal advised,  he  sent  an  army  into  Greece, 
where  the  Romans  met  him,  and  annihilated  his 
army  almost  without  loss  on  their  part.  Antio- 
chus purchased  a  peace  of  the  Roman  senate  with 
a  heavy  tribute,  and  the  loss  of  a  considerable 
portion  of  his  kingdom. 

Syria  remained,  however,  an  independent  mo- 
narchy, more  than  a  century  after  this,  and  was 
destined  to  grace  the  triumph  of  Pompey,  sixty- 
five  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ.  The  Ro- 
mans, in  their  Asiatic  wars  and  conquests,  found 
but  one  enemy  who  was  truly  great  and  formida- 
ble.   Mithridates,  king  of  Pontus,  is  considered  as 


ROME.  255 

the  second  hero  who  ever  took  the  field  against 
the  Romans  ;  indeed,  if  we  except  the  imme- 
diate danger  of  Rome  after  the  battle  of  Canns, 
Mithridates  was  a  more  powerful  and  formidable 
enemy  than  even  Hannibal  himself,  at  least  from 
adventitious  advantages. 

In  a  reign  of  nearly  sixty  years,  Mithridates 
was  a  troublesome,  daring,  and  almost  invincible 
adversary  of  Rome.  Whilst  very  young  the  Ro- 
mans had  interfered  in  a  dispute  between  him  and 
the  king  of  Bythinia,  and  had  taken  from  him 
the  sovereignty  of  Cappadocia.  Implacable  in 
resentment,  he  watched  a  favourable  moment, 
and  took  a  revenge  on  the  Romans  almost  un- 
paralleled in  the  annals  of  time.  In  one  night 
he  massacred  1-50,000  Romans,  including  every 
Roman  found  in  his  dominions.  So  horrible  a 
slaughter  roused  the  Roman  state,  and  the  consul 
Aquilius  was  sent  against  him  with  a  powerful 
army.  The  consul  was  taken  prisoner,  and  his 
army  nearly  destroyed.  Lucius  Sylla  followed 
with  another  army,  and  having  obtained  some  ad- 
vantage over  the  king  of  Pontus,  a  peace  was 
concluded,  in  which  he  was  restricted  to  his  own 
paternal   dominions. 

But  Mithridates,  without  the  least  regard  to  the 
treaty,  or  thinking  himself  justified  in  violating 
faith  with  a  nation  who  had  now  subjugated  the 
greater  part  of  the  civilized  world,  was  imme- 
diately at  the  head  of  160,000  infantry  and  16,000 
cavalry.  With  this  formidable  force  he  overrun 
all  the  Roman  provinces  in  Asia,  and,  crossing 
over  into  Greece,  with  the  rapidity  of  a  whirl- 
wind, subjugated  all  Greece  and  Macedonia,  sa- 
crificing  to  his  vengeance  every  Roman  who  came 
in  his  way. 


256  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

LucuUus,  one  of  the  ablest  of  all  the  Roman  ge- 
nerals, was  sent  against  this  warlike  prince  ;  but 
the  distance  of  the  enemy,  and  the  difficulties  of 
marching  an  army  so  far  through  hostile  countries, 
rendered  the  expedition  dangerous,  and  the  ser- 
vice incomplete.  The  Roman  discipline  and  im- 
proved tactics  of  this  period  gave  Lucullus  an 
advantage,  which,  however,  the  intrepid  bravery 
and  consummate  talents  of  Mithridates  embarass- 
ed  with  danger  and  difficulty. 

Lucullus,  on  his  arrival  in  Asia,  found  Mithri- 
dates employed  in  the  siege  of  Cyzicus,  a  city 
Jying  on  the  Propontis.  The  city  was  built  on 
an  island  of  the  same  name,  which  Alexander 
had  connected  with  the  continent  by  two  bridges, 
and  since  his  time  it  had  been  considered  as  the 
key  of  Asia  Minor.  Lucullus  compelled  the  king 
of  Pontus  to  raise  the  siege,  and  at  length  de- 
feated him  in  battle ;  but  bj  the  intrigues  at  Rome, 
where  Porapey  was  engrossing  all  power,  Lucul- 
lus, who  was  a  near  connection  of  Cato,  the  fa- 
mous patriot,  was  recalled,  his  year  of  com- 
mand being  at  an  end.  Luculius,  because  he 
could  not  be  made  the  tool  of  Fompey,  was  re- 
called, and  dismissed  from  office,  and  Glabrio,  a 
tool  indeed,  and  such  a  kind  of  tool  as  ambitious 
men  often  see  fit  to  invest  with  the  command  of 
armies,  was  sent  to  Asia  to  finish  the  war. 

Glabrio  was  soon  defeated,  and  so  complete 
was  the  destruction  of  his  army,  that  Cicero,  in 
his  oration  before  the  Roman*  senate,  declared 
that  there  was  not  a  man  left  to  bring  the  dis- 
tressing intelligence  ;  and  that  the  news  of  the 
calamity  was  propatjiated  by  the  voice  of  rumor. 
In  consequence  of  this  disaster,  Pompey  was 
sent  with  another  army  against  this  powerful 
monarch.     But  an  army  could  not  arrive  till  a'Ji 


ROME.  257 

Asia  had  been  again  overrun,  and  all  Greece— 
and  a  panic  had  seized  the  city  of  Rome  itself, 
lest  Mithndates,  so  rapid  were  his  movements, 
should  land  his  army  in  Italy,  and  invest  Rome. 

The   decisive    battle   between    Pompey    and 
Milhridates  was  fought  on  the  plains  of  Pharsalia, 
where    Pompey    himself   was    afterwards   over- 
thrown by  Juliu3  CcBsar,  and  where,  in  modern 
times,  Tamerlane  defeated  Bajazet,  and  liberated 
Europe  from  the  dominion  of  the  Turks.  Mithri- 
dates,   overpowered  by  the   superior  fortunes  of 
Rome,  retired   into   Asia,   where    his   resources 
seemed  now  in  a  measure  to  f^iil  him.     Yet  he 
assembled  a  powerful  army  near  the  bajiks  of  the 
Euphrates,  and  gave  battle  once  more  to  Pompey, 
but  with  a  similar  result.     He  fled  to  Tigranes, 
king  of  Armenia,  who  was  his  son-in-law.  There 
he  was  treacherously  abandoned  by  his  unnatural 
relation,  who,  in  hopes  of  making  a  merit  with  the 
Romans,  violated  the  ties  of  nature,  and  excluded 
the  fallen  Mithridates   from  his  kingdom.     The 
kingdom   of  Tigranes  was    made  a   Roman  pro- 
vince.    But    nothing   could    break  the  spirit  of 
Mithridates,  who  had    now  sustained   a  war  of 
40   years    with  the  most    powerful    people    on 
earth.     He  fled   into  Scythia,  and  there  planned 
an  invasion  of  Italy,  intending  suddenly  to  break 
into  the  heart  of   the  Roman    empire,   and  risk 
every  thing  in  a  last  attempt.     But  he  was  now 
70  years  of  age,  though    with  almost  unabated 
vigor  and    activity.     He    sent  a   messenger  to 
Pompey,  demanding  terms  of  peace ;  but  Pompey, 
desirous  of  getting   him  in  his   power,  returned 
answer,  that  no  peace  could  be   granted  unless 
Mithridates  came  in  person.     The  veteran  war- 
rior understood  but  too  well  w^hat  this  implied. 
His  subjects  revolted  from  him,  and  crowned  his 
22* 


'258  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

son  Pharnaces  king  in  his  stead.  Mithridates, 
now  seeing  all  was  lost,  took  a  dose  of  poison, 
which  proving  unable  to  destroy  his  iron  frame, 
he  stabbed  himself,  but  the  blow  was  ineffectual, 
and  at  length  he  prevailed  on  one  of  liis  atten- 
dants, to  give  him  the  fatal  wound,  in  the  72d 
year  of  his  age,  63  years  before  the  christian  eera. 
The  news  of  his  death  filled  the  Roman  empire 
with  joy  and  exultation,  and  was  the  true  pane- 
gyric of  his  greatness. 

Mithridates  was  certainly  a  man  of  the  most 
astonishing  powers.  It  is  said  that  he  was 
master  of  24  languages,  and  that  in  tlie  course  of 
his  reign  he  had  conquered  that  number  of  na- 
tions. He  was  remarkably  skilled  in  physic  and 
botany,  and  was  an  elegant  master  of  Grecian 
literature  ;  having  written  several  able  and  learned 
productions.  As  a  warrior  his  fame  is  almost 
unrivalled ;  he  moved  an  army  with  greater 
celerity  than  Hannibal,  his  deliberative  powers 
were  no  way  inferior  to  those  of  C^sar,  and  his 
attack  was  as  well  timed  and  fierce  as  that  of 
Alexander.  His  resources  were  inferior  to  those 
of  any  other  of  the  great  commanders  who  com- 
prise the  first  class. 

Few  of  the  Asiatics,  after  the  ancient  Assyrians 
and  Persians,  were  warlike  ;  and  in  all  those 
regions  where  he  reigned  he  was  the  only  great 
man  of  his  time.  He  was  cruel  and  sanguinary 
to  his  enemies  and  rivals,  and  he  is  accused  of 
being  most  perfidiously  treacherous  and  false. 
But  the  Roman  writers  accuse  him  ;  and  indeed 
if  he  was  more  guilty  of  these  crimes  than  the 
Romans  he  must  have  been  chargeable  with 
more  than  human  guilt.  He  resisted  the  power 
of  Rome  for  40  years,  when  at  the  zenith  of  her 
power,  and  for  boldness,  extent,  and  security  df 


ROME.  £59 

policy,  he  surpassed  all  his  contemporaries;  and, 
however  extravagant  it  may  be  thought,  Cicero 
declared  him  the  greatest  monarch  that  ever  sat 
on  a  throne. 

During  the  period  of  Roman  history  now  before 
us,  this  martial  people  found  another  enemy, 
who  sufficiently  exercised  their  courage  and 
military  prowess.  And  although  a  little  prior  in 
point  of  time  to  the  wars  of  Mithridates,  1  have 
introduced  it  in  this  place,  as  it  will  lead  to  the 
last  article  of  civil  history  which  I  propose  to 
notice  in  this  lecture.  It  will  also  reflect  light 
on  a  period  of  African  history  subsequent  to  the 
fall  of  Carthage. 

Massinissa,  king  of  Numidia,  in  the  first  part  of 
the  Punic  wars,  had  yielded  essential  service  to 
Carthage.  lie  was  a  prince,  though  of  small 
dominion,  of  great  abilities  and  bravery  in  war, 
and  for  awhile  had  united  his  resources  to  those 
of  the  Carthaginians  with  great  effect.  The 
Numidian  cavalry  were  superior  for  swiftness 
and  courage,  and  had  acquired  a  universal  reputa- 
tion. The  elder  Scipio,  however  detached 
Massinissa  from  the  interest  of  Carthage,  by  a 
masterly  reach  of  policy  which  seldom  occurs  to 
any  but  such  as  are  born  to  conquer  and  govern. 
At  the  defeat  of  Asdrubal,  in  Spain,  a  nephew  of 
Massinissa  fell  into  the  hands  of  Scipio  the  con= 
queror.  This  young  prince  was  ti-eated  wilii 
every  kind  of  respect  by  Scipio,  who,  after  a. 
while  returned  him  to  the  king  of  Numidia  with  a 
strong  escort,  and  loaded  with  rich  presents  to  his 
uncle.  By  the  persuasions  of  the  restored  cap- 
tive, and  probably  by  the  still  more  powerful 
eloquence  of  gold,  Massinissa  withdrew  trom  his 
alliance  to  Carthage,  and  evrr  after  was  firm  U 
the  interest  of  the  Koman's, 


260  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

It  is  not  easy  to  pronounce  on  the  policy  of 
this  conduct :  its  effects  were  obvious  ;  for  it  un- 
questionably accelerated  tlie  fall  of  Carthage, 
and  gave  all  Africa  to  the  Romans.  In  the  deci- 
sive battle  of  Zama,  where  Hannibal  and  Scipio 
acted  the  last  scene  of  the  bloody  drama,  Massi- 
nissa  aided  in  the  destruction  of  a  neighbour,  in 
v.'hose  fate  that  of  his  own  kingdom  was  involved. 
Yet,  perhaps,  his  subserviency  to  the  Romans  was 
preferable  to  the  capricious  tyranny  of  the  san- 
guinary factions  of  the  senate  of  Carthage. 

Blassinissa,  on  his  death,  left  his  kingdom  to  be 
divided  by  Bcipio,  the  younger,  among  his  three 
sons  ;  and  the  division  was  accordingly  made, 
with  great  equity,  by  that  exalted  statesman  and 
hero.  But,  by  the  death  of  two  of  them,  the 
whole  kingdom  of  Numidia  fell  to  Micipsa,  who 
transmitted  it  to  his  two  sons,  Hiempsal  and  Ad- 
herbal,  and  a  nephew,  whose  name  was  Jugur- 
tha.  The  name  and  wars  of  Jugurtha  are  im- 
mortalized by  the  eloquent  pen  of  Sallust.  This 
prince  united  the  great  qualities  of  the  hero  and 
statesman  with  every  tiding  that  can  render  the 
human  character  base  and  detestable.  He  trea- 
cherously murdered  Hiempsal,  and  when  Adher- 
bal  appeared  befere  the  Roman  senate  to  implore 
aid  against  the  false  and  bloody  usurper,  Jugur- 
tha was  able  to  maintain  his  cruse  by  bribery  and 
falsehood.  Indeed,  equity  was  no  longer  to  be 
expected  from  that  once  august  body,  whose 
edicts  were  at  sale  to  the  highest  bidder,  and 
whose  laws  spread  more  widely,  and  diffused 
more  deeply  the  poison  of  corruption. 

When  the  senate  of  Rome  perceived  that  Ju- 
gurtha used  their  favour  to  secure  his  own  inde- 
pendence, which,  by  their  neglect,  he  had  ce- 
iDented  with  the  blood  of  all  who  stood  in  his 


ROME.  £61 

way,  they  resorted,  as  usual,  to  war.  With  the 
loss  of  several  armies,  they  at  length  led  the 
daring  rebel  in  chains  :  he  adorned  the  triumph 
of  Caius  Marius,  and  expired  in  prison  at  Korae, 

The  war  of  Jugurtha  kindled  a  flame  in  Italy, 
which,  together  with  millions  of  lives,  and  the 
choicest  blood  of  the  Fioraan  nation,  extirpated 
the  liberties  of  '^'oine,  and  condemned  the  whole 
human  race  to  the  relentless  chains  of  tyrants  for 
1,5';0  years.  Metellus  had  been  sent  against  Ju- 
gurtha, but  his  efforts  were,  in  some  degree,  pa- 
ralyzed by  the  rage  of  factions  at  home  ;  and  the 
vigorous  resistance  of  a  brave,  daring,  and  subtle 
adversary,  bid  fair  to  protract  the  war.  At  this 
time,  a  man  appeared  in  Rome  of  a  character  as 
extraordinary  as  the  emergency  of  the  times  in 
which  he  lived  was  peculiar. 

Caius  Marius  was  a  man  of  great  vigour  of 
mind,  and  his  gigantic  size  and  strength  of  body 
rendered  him  an  object  of  admiration  and  terror. 
Though  a  plebeian  by  birth,  and  educated  in  the 
rude  scenes  of  a  remote  country  viJlage,  he  early 
showed  the  talents  of  a  soldier  and  commander. 
Repairing  to  Rome,  where  he  saw  every  thing 
was  become  venal,  and  where  monstrous  corrup- 
tion unveiled  her  most  deformed  and  hidious  fea- 
tures, he,  though  a  commoner,  preferred  a  claim 
to  the  consulate  ;  and,  though  expressly  contrary 
to  the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  constitution,  and  the 
uniform  practice  of  the  state,  he  was  elected  con- 
sul. At  the  head  of  an  army,  he  marched  against 
Jugurtha.  But  his  army  was  raised  in  a  manner 
as  novel,  as  his  own  appointment  had  been  ex- 
traordinary, lie  neglected  the  five  classes  of  ci- 
tizens into  which  the  Roman  state  was  divided, 
and  enlisted  men  from  the  lowest  and  menial 
order. 


26i2  ANCIENT  HISTORV. 

But  this  army,  under  his  powerful  hand,  be- 
came formidable,  and  defeating  Jugurtha,  he  com- 
pelled him  to  take  refuge  at  the  court  of  Bochus, 
king  of  Mauritania.  Marius,  therefore,  sent  an 
ambassador  to  that  court  to  demand  that  Jugurtha 
should  be  delivered  up  to  the  Romans.  This  im- 
portant business  was  entrusted  to  Lucius  SvHa, 
a  man  of  deep  intrigue,  perfidious  temper, 'and 
daring  ambition.  Sylla  transacted  this  business 
with  so  much  adroitness,  that  an  impression  pre- 
vailed at  Rome,  that  the  merit  of  subduing  Jugur- 
tha was  his,  and  the  honour  due  to  him,  and  not 
to  Marius.  Rome,  Italy,  and  the  world,  were  di- 
vided between  these  two  men,  who  both  demand- 
ed a  triumph,  and  w^ere  both  worthy  of  a  gibbet 
or  a  cross. 

A  civil  war  ensued,  and  Rome  was  ruined.  As 
one  or  the  other  party  prevailed,  the  opposite 
party  fell  under  the  most  horrible  proscriptions, 
and  at  every  turn,  Rome,  and  Italy  itself,  were 
deluged  in  blood.  Remorseless  as  death,  and  fu- 
rious as  a  whirlwind,  these  two  monsters  in  human 
form,  were  able  to  embroil  the  world,  and  to 
draw  forth  and  exhaust  the  resources  which  had 
been  swelled  by  the  plunder  of  ail  civilized  na- 
tions. 

Sylla  prevailed  ;  and  while  Marius  obtained  the 
blood-stained  title  o(  Father  of  his  ccvjitry,  Sylla 
was  made  perpetual  dictator  ;  an  office  which 
empowered  him  to  consign  to  death  every  man  in 
the  state,  whose  villanies  had  not  rendered  him 
necessay  to  the  tyrant,  or  whose  virtues  had  made 
him  worthy  to  live. 

The  war  of  Marius  and  Sylla  was  but  the  be- 
ginning of  the  calamities  of  Rome.  They  laid 
the  foundation  of  two  factions,  whose  continued 
collisions  agitated  the  commonwealth  to  its  cen- 


Ii03IE.  Zb 

tre,  and  sifted  out  of  it  every  thing  which  could 
not  assimilate  to  the  order  of  the  most  despotic 
government  of  ancient  times.  Sjlla  remained 
undisputed  master  of  Rome  for  some  years,  and 
like  an  archer,  from  day  to  day,  singled  out  tlie 
victims  of  his  vengeance,  and  dipt  his  arrous  in 
the  best  blood  of  the  noblest  and  last  of  the  an- 
cient republics. 

The  wars  of  this  period  gave  a  new  tone  to  the 
public  mind.  Men  of  virtue  and  discernment 
saw  clearly  that  the  civil  liberty  of  this  great  na- 
tion was  at  an  end,  though  the  leaders  of  each 
party,  at  every  step  of  their  progress,  professed 
an  exclusive  aim  at  the  good  of  their  country  and 
the  freedom  of  the  people — a  profession  which  an 
ambitious  tyrant  never  fails  to  make. 

Whilst  the  luminaries  v/hicb  enlightened  and 
adorned  this  great  republic  were  ail  hastening 
from  the  horizon,  one  of  distinguished  lustra 
rose  to  give,  as  it  would  seem,  the  last  glory  to 
the  Roman  character  and  name.  During  the  atro- 
cities of  Sylla,  the  younger  Cato  was  still  very 
young ;  he  was  probably  the  most  remarkable 
instance  of  inflexible  truth  and  sincerity  that 
ever  adorned  any  nation.  When  he  was  a  boy 
about  fourteen  years  old,  his  master,  Sarpedo, 
used  to  be  invited  to  take  him  sometimes  to  the 
house  of  Sylla.  One  day  Sylla  had  caused  some 
person  to  be  put  to  death,  and  Cato,  seeing  a 
number  of  persons  about  the  house  of  the  dic- 
tator weeping,  and  in  great  sorrow,  turned  to  his 
master  Sarpedo  and  said,  "  Why  does  not  some- 
body kill  Sylla  ?"  *'  Because,"  replied  Sarpedo, 
"  every  body  fears  him."  '*  Give  me  a  sword," 
said  Cato,  "  and  I  will  kill  him,  and  relieve  them 
from  that  fear."  So  firm  was  the  temper,  and 
intre^iid  the  spirit  of  the  youthful    patriot,  that 


264  ANCIENT   IIISTORI. 

his  precfiptor  hastened  him  away  from  the  hou;;e> 
and  carefuily  kept  watch  over  him,  lest  he  should 
actually  attempt  so  bold  and  hazardous  an  en- 
terprise. 

Scarce  was  Sj-lla  removed  from  the  stage 
4\hich  he  had  crowded  with  scenes  of  tragic  hor- 
ror, when  he  was  followed  up  by  men  of  more 
extensive  views,  reiined  ambition,  and  daring 
courage.  Pompey  revived  the  spirit  of  faction  ; 
and  the  two,  monstrous  demons,  avarice  and 
ambition,  let  loose  on  an  immense  mass  of  people, 
again  prepared  the  Romans  to  butcher  and  de- 
stroy one  another.  Pompey  had  returned  from 
Ihe  conquest  of  Asia,  filled  all  Rome  with  his 
triumphs,  and  dazzled  the  people  of  the  vast 
capital  with  exhibitions  of  his  munificence  and 
glory. 

Pompey  seemed  destined  to  be  the  master  of 
the  Roman  empire  ;  for  the  pyramid  of  power, 
shaped  upward,  was  now  taking  such  a  form 
as  to  admit  of  but  one  man  to  stand  on  the  apex. 
But  Pompey  and  the  vrhole  world  were  disap- 
pointed and  astonished  by  the  appearance  of  a 
man,  in  whom  the  civil  and  military  genius  of 
Rotr.e  made  a  display  of  their  utmost  strength 
and  perfection.  Pompey  had  been  raised  high 
by  the  vast  extent  of  his  talents  and  resources, 
and  whi]«^t  he  was  planning  for  himself,  on  a 
scale  of  calculation  vast  as  the  world,  and  high 
as  the  throne  of  Cyrus,  or  Alexander,  Julius  Cas- 
gar  had  consumed  five  years  in  the  hidden  realms 
of  central  Europe,  where,  with  nerve  of  steel  and 
geniub  of  fire,  he  had  conquered  the  fierce  and 
martial  tribes  of  Gaul,  Germany,  and  Britain. 

■Phe  world  was  now  to  witness  a  conflict  be- 
tween its  two  greatest  men,  bui  formed  in  different 
jsehools.     Pompey   was    the   favourite   child   pf 


ROME»  265 

fortune.  He  had  budded,  blossomed,  and  grown 
mature  under  an  ardent  sunshine  ; — great  in  his 
own  mind — great  in  his  fortune — great  in  his 
friends — and  great  in  all  his  plans  and  successes. 
Like  a  laurel  under  a  genial  sun,  his  shaft  was  tall, 
bis  branches  bold  and  towering,  his  foliage  deep 
and  luxuriant :  of  a  man  he  was  the  finest,  per- 
l^aps  the  loveliest  figure  that  Rome  ever  reared. 

But  Caesar,  though  he  boasted,  indeed,  of  his 
family,  was  trained  in  a  harder  scheol.  He 
grew  slowly  overshadowed  by  greater  men. 
When  ready  for  action,  he  was  conveyed  to  a 
region  where  labour,  without  recompense,  and 
without  rest,  required  all  his  powers  ;  where  the 
howl  of  the  midnight  savage  added  nothing  to 
his  repose ;  where  long  marches,  winter  cam- 
paigns, and  dangerous  battles,  allowed  him  not 
even  to  dream  of  luxuries.  Csesar  was  like  the 
oak  of  the  northern  hill,  which,  while  the  storni 
is  wasted  on  its  brow,  gathers  a  deeper  root 
unseen. 

But  though  Pompey  and  Ceesar  were  on  the 
theatre  of  action,  there  was  another  man  with 
them,  for  whose  fame  and  glory  I  would  freely 
barter  all  the  laurels  of  both.  Cato  never  bow- 
ed— was  not  corrupted — was  not  awed — neither 
could  he  fear  the  power,  nor  court  the  favour, 
of  those  men  whose  traffick  was  in  kingdomso 
Whilst  their  ambitious  schemes  were  forming,  he 
saw  their  aim  at  a  distance  ;  he  did  whatever  one 
man  cojld  do,  and  more  than  any  other  man  could 
have  done,  to  rescue  his  country;  but  such  can- 
dour, such  integrity,  such  boldness,  such  intrepid, 
and  undaunted  zeal,  rode  safely  through  the  storm, 
in  the  midst  of  the  factions  of  Rome,  he  was  like 
a  rock  around  whose  sides  the  waves  roar,  and 
rerapests  beat,  in  vaiia. 

23 


260  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

At  Pharsalia  the  fortune  of  Rome  was  decided, 
and  CcEsar  triumphed.  But  the  triumph  of  the 
wicked  is  short.  Ca?sar  had  shed  too  much  inno- 
cent blood  to  be  sutTered  by  eternal  wisdom  to 
remain  long  on  the  lofty  summit  to  which  he  had 
ascended  through  slaughter,  perfidy,  and  guilt.— 
A  conspiracy  hurled  him  in  a  moment  from  the 
throne  to  the  grave.  But  the  people  of  Rome,  who 
were  liberated  from  the  government  of  a  tyrant 
by  his  death,  instantly  joined  in  pjTsait  of  Brutus 
and  Cassius,  by  whom  he  had  beco  slain. 

There  has  been  a  period  hi  the  history  of  every 
free  government,  when  the  people  would  be  no 
longer  free.  Take,  from  them  one  tyrant,  and 
they  vvill  immec'ateiy  set  up  another.  The  war 
between  Auguslu"-  Cssai  a^d  Mark  Antony  was 
not  a  war  for  liberty  ;  nor  did  Julius  Crcsar  de- 
stroy the  liberties  of  Rome.  They  were  funda- 
mentally destroyed  before  either  of  the  Caesars 
existed. 

The  history  of  Rome  from  the  commencement 
of  the  imperial  government,  with  some  excep- 
tions, presents  one  wide  scene  of  corruption, 
dissipation,  and  decay.  They  were  in  little 
danger  of  invasion.  The  empire  was  iramen$e5 
its  resources  equal  to  its  extent  of  dominion  ;  but 
it  is  impossible  not  to  observe  a  rapid  deteriora- 
tion in  manners,  morals,  dignity  of  character, 
and  happiness. 

The  Romans  were  peculiarly  unfortunate  in 
their  emperors.  The  greater  number  of  them 
were  mere  tissues  of  vice,  cruelty,  and  weakness. 
But  it  was  my  intention  to  discontinue  this  rapid 
survey  of  Rome  at  the  accession  of  Augustus  to 
the  imperial  throne.  This  event  took  place  iu 
the  thirtieth  year  before  the  birth  of  Christ. 
The  national  character  of  the   Romans  was 


ROME.  26? 

exceedingly  different  from  that  of  tiie  Greeks 
Perhaps  the  character  of  all  nations  takes  its 
chief  lines  from  early  and  local  circumstancee. 
The  Romans  were  grave,  dignified,  and  contem- 
plative in  their  manners  and  deportment.  Their 
literature  shows  strongly  this  trait ;  of  course, 
when  softened  by  benevolence  and  civility,  they 
were  more  interesting  than  the  Greeks.  Their 
literary  excellence  was  rather  reflected  than 
original.  For,  till  after  the  conquest  of  Greece, 
the  Romans  were  in  a  state  of  barbarity,  as  far 
as  want  of  science  could  constitute  that  state  ; 
yet  they  showed  themselves  noi  incrtpribie  of 
science.  Their  Livy,  Tacitus,  and  Sall:»si,  evince 
a  transcendent  degree  of  classic  excellence.  Their 
Virgil  and  Horace,  among  poets,  ccnnot  fall  into 
a  second  class.  The  current  of  f?.r;n;on,  and,  per- 
haps, the  august  tribunal  of  tasu,  has  generally 
set  Homer  before  Virgil  in  point  of  excellence  ; 
yet  I  appeal  to  every  feeling  reader,  that  he 
oftener  pays  to  the  Latin,  than  to  the  Greek,  the 
tribute  of  a  tear.  If  poetry  is  the  language  of 
passion,  that  poetry  is  best  which  dissolves  the 
heart,  and  enkindles  the  soul  v/ith  raptures. 
Few  have  wept  or  nn.ourned  over  Homer — few 
have  read  the  melting  numbers  of  the  Mantuan 
bard  without  both. 

In  general  literature  few  persons  beyond  the 
Gothic  ages  surpassed  the  Roman  orator.  I  have 
doubted  whether  a  man  in  ancient  times  had 
more  general  science  than  Cicero :  and  in 
eloquence  there  is  a  competition  between  him  and 
Demosthenes  which  will  probably  never  be 
settled.  In  a  belief  of  the  doctrine  of  a  future 
and  just  retribution,  it  is  melancholy  to  consider 
how  little  moral  virtue  the  Roman  people  pos- 
sessed.    Their  continual  rage  for  war;  the  years 


tQB  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

and  ages  through  which  their  course  was  marked' 
with  blood  ;  the  cries  and  groans  of  nations, 
recorded  against  them,  cannot  be  considered  but 
with  awful  apprehension.  A  righteous  provi- 
dence has  disposed  of  them,  and  their  memorial 
should  be  viewed  by  us  as  a  beacon  set  up  for 
our  instruction. 

The  history  of  the  Hebrew  state,  the  last  in 
our  proposed  course,  will  next  engage  our  at- 
tention. 


269 


LECTURE  XII, 


The  Hcbrcrv  State. 

A  TREE  whose  living  and  imperishable  root 
was  early  planted  by  the  hand  of  God,  whose 
trunk  rose  high,  and  whose  spreading  branches 
have  furnished  shade  and  fruit  for  the  nations, 
seems  now  to  stand  before  us.  Abraham  was 
the  tenth  in  descent  from  Noah,  of  the  line  of 
Shem,  the  founder  of  the  ancient  church  of  God, 
and  the  father  of  the  promised  Messiah. 

The  removal  of  Abraham  from  the  country  of 
Mesopotamia,  into  the  land  of  Canaan,  by  divine 
direction,  commences  the  history  of  the  Hebrew 
church  and  nation.  As  yet  God  had  distinguish- 
ed no  family,  and  it  remained  uncertain  what 
special  course  the  dispensations  of  moral  light  and 
divine  grace  would  lake,  when  God  commanded 
Abraham  to  retire  from  his  native  country,  and 
from  his  father's  house,  into  the  land  of  Canaan, 
which  place,  he  was  assured,  should  be  the  future 
inheritance  of  his  posterity,  and  the  seat  of  the 
divine  oracles. 

After  a  residence  of  some  years  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  God  entered  into  a  covenant  with 
Abi'aham,  and  the  rite  of  circumcision  was  in- 
stituted. In  this  covenant  were  promised  to 
Abraham  and  his  seed  many  temporal  blessings, 
and  particularly  the  land  of  Canaan,  as  an  in- 
heritance ;  also,  that  the  Messiah  should  be  born 
«f  Abraham's  seed  ;  through  faith  in  whom,  both 
23* 


270  AXCIENT  HISTORY, 

Jew  and  Gentile  should  inherit  eternal  salvatioR 
By  virtue  of  God's  promise  to  Abraham,  his 
natural  ofifspring,  provided  they  did  not  forfeit  by 
rebellion,  were  entitled  to  all  the  temporal 
blessings  of  the  covenant,  and  such  as  had  faith 
in  Christ,  to  all  the  blessings  of  eternal  salva- 
tion. In  Abraham'?  covenant,  the  requirements 
and  promises  were  adapted  to  each  other. 
There  was  a  temporal  and  spiritual  part.  Abra= 
ham's  faith  and  holiness  were  required  of  all  ; 
and  to  such  as  possessed  them,  Abraham's  blessing, 
in  its  whole  extent,  was  promised. 

We  behold  Abraham,  the  noblest  of  the 
patriarchs,  settled  in  the  promised  land,  not, 
however,  as  a  proprietor,  but  merely  as  a  sojourn- 
er, and  dwelling  in  tents  with  Isaac  and  Jacob. 
The  character  and  conduct  of  Abraham  were 
such  as  procured  him  a  more  honourable  appella- 
tion than  any  other  mortal  man  ever  obtained. 
He  was  called  the  friend  of  God.  Every  good 
man  is,  in  a  gense,  the  friend  of  God  ;  but  the 
phrase  applied  to  Abraham  was  used  in  its  ap- 
propriate sense,  which  signifies  intimacy,  and 
cordial  union  and  correspondence. 

The  passages  of  the  life  of  Abraham,  recorded 
by  Moses,  give  us  the  most  exalted  opinion  of  his 
character,  for  amiableness,  piety,  justice,  and 
wisdom.  Though  he  resided  in  Canaan  in  tents, 
and  occasionally  removed  from  place  to  place, 
his  wealth  had  become  great,  and  the  inhabitants 
of  the  country  held  him  in  the  utmost  veneration. 
To  the  reputation  of  a  patriarch,  a  sage,  a  prifice 
of  exalted  wisdom  and  virtue,  they  seemed  to 
respect  him  for  what  he  was — the  peculiar  friend 
and  favourite  of  God  They  entertained  for 
him  a  deep,  awful  veneration,  as  a  great  and 
hoiy  prophet.     Is  or  did  they  less  fear  him  as  a 


THE  HEBREW  STATE.  271 

iieio  than  a  prophet.  Abimeleck,  king  of  Gerar, 
and  Pharaoh,  king  of  Egypt,  treated  him  as  a 
friend  and  an  equal ;  and  in  his  residence  near 
them,  they  showed  a  high  regard  to  honour, 
h^viitality,  and  religion. 

-:ihe  military  prowess  of  Abraham  was  con- 
spicuous, and  very  remarkable,  in  the  invasion 
of  Amraphel,  king  of  Shinar,  on  the  allies  of 
Abraham.  Amraphel,  supposed  to  be  the  king 
of  Babylon,  with  three  other  kings,  invaded 
the  kings  of  Sodom,  and  obtaining  a  victory 
over  them,  had  sacked  those  cities,  and  carried 
otr  the  family  of  Lot,  Abraham's  nephew,  with 
many  captives  and  much  booty.  Abraham  arm- 
ed his  trained  servants,  said  to  be  about  300,  and 
with  his  three  friends,  Anor,  Eschol,  and  Mamre^ 
near  whose  territories  he  resided^  and,  it  is  pro- 
bable, their  joint  forces,  he  pursued  the  ar- 
my of  the  confederate  kings,  and  dividing  his 
force  into  three  bodies,  attacked  them  from  three 
several  directions  at  the  same  time.  A  great 
slaughter  ensued,  the  enemy  was  defeated,  and 
all  the  captives  and  plunder  recovered.  Abra- 
ham returned  in  triumph,  and  restored  to  Lot 
whatever  he  had  lost,  as  well  as  to  others  who 
had  been  his  fellow  sufferers. 

What  is  greatly  to  the  honour  of  the  patriarch, 
when  offered  an  ample  compensation  for  his  im- 
portant and  dangerous  service,  he  declined  the 
smallest  consideration.  ISo  far  from  waging  an 
unnecessary  war,  for  the  base  motive  of  gain  or 
conquest,  he  had  repelled  an  invasion,  and  termi- 
nated gloriously  a  war  of  defence,  wiifao-ji  dis- 
tressing those  whom  he  had  served  by  enormous 
exaction,  or  tarnishing  his  glory  by  a  mercenary 
reward. 

One  of  the  most  extraordinary  circumstances  in 


«72  APJCIENT  IIISTORV. 

the  life  of  Abraham,  was  the  peculiar  way  in 
which  God  chose  to  try  his  fidelity.  Isaac,  the 
child  of  promise,  from  whom  the  great  Messiah 
was  to  descend,  was  born  to  Abraham  at  a  very 
advanced  period  of  life.  Every  circumstance — 
the  great  age  of  his  parents,  his  birth  by  express 
promise,  and  the  vast  hopes  centring  in  him, 
rendered  him  an  object  of  deep  interest  to  the 
family  of  the  patriarch,  and  raised  the  fondest 
affection  of  his  aged  parents. 

A  sudden  cloud  shaded  all  their  hopes  and  pros- 
pects, when  God  commanded  Abraham  to  go  to 
Mount  Moriah,  and  offer  this  his  son  and  heir  a 
burnt  sacrifice  to  God  The  trial  was  inexpressi- 
ble. An  enlightened  and  sincere  worshipper  of 
the  true  God  must  feel  an  abhorrence  of  human 
sacrifice  which  no  tongue  can  describe.  The  di- 
vine promise,  that  Isaac  should  be  the  father  of 
nations,  seemed  to  torbid — the  ardour  of  paren- 
tal hope  and  tenderness  must  revolt— and  then, 
that  he  must  do  the  horrid  deed  with  his  own 
hand — must  hear  the  piercing  cry,  the  fainting 
wail,  the  dying  sob  -must  witness  the  last  ago- 
ny, the  pale  countenance,  the  faded  eye  of  the 
djinglamb,  which  had  been  nourished  in  his  bo- 
som, and  which,  of  all  creatures  on  earth,  was 
the  dearest 

To  estimate  this  trial,  we  must  consider  the 
great  age  of  the  venerable  patriarch  and  his  con- 
sort. They  were  far  past  those  years  of  vigour 
when  we  endure  pain  with  firmness,  and  sorrow 
with  fortitude.  Age  brinos  on  a  peculiar  tender- 
ness towards  children  and  youth,  and  an  equal 
abhorrence  of  inflicting  or  witnessing  pain.  View 
the  venerable  pair,  their  heads  whitened  with  the 
snows  of  age,  doting  on  their  beloved  Isaac,  the 
heir  of  all  their  wealth    now  verging  toward? 


THE    HEBREW    STATE.  273 

manhood  :  all  their  'earthly  comfort  lay  in  him  ; 
he  was  to  close  their  eyes,  and  bear  their  name 
to  posterity. 

How  could  Abraham  take  away  the  lovely 
boy  from  his  aged  mother,  to  slay  him  on  a  dis- 
tant mountain,  and  burn  his  body  a  sacrifice, 
without  telling  her  who  had  been  the  faithful  and 
lovely  companion  of  all  his  years  ?  It  is  impossi- 
ble ! — He  must  have  done  it.  And  yet  how  dan- 
gerous is  the  contagion  of  overwhelming  grief! 
Passion  is  like  fire  :  as  a  servint,  it  is  useful — as 
a  master,  it  is  terrible.  Abraham  was  too  good  a 
man  to  let  passion  drown  the  voice  of  equity.  He 
communicated,  I  presume,  the  awful  secret  to  Sa- 
rah, and  allowed  her  the  opportunity  to  take  a  last 
embrace — a  parting  look — to  weep  and  pray  in 
secret.  For  it  is  certain,  Isaac  was  not  informed 
of  his  destiny  till  the  event  could  be  no  longer 
concealed. 

I  cannot  but  imagine  the  aflPecting  conversa- 
tions which  occurred  between  Abraham  and  Sa- 
rah, and  the  intense,  ineffable  struggle,  between 
parental  tenderness  and  duty  to  God  ;  and  how, 
at  length,  they  were  able  to  rest  the  mournful  sub- 
ject in  the  hand  of  infinite  goodness.  Abraham 
repaired  to  the  place  appointed,  and  leaving  his 
servants  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  with  his  son 
ascended  to  the  spot  where  he  expected  to  part 
with  all  his  earthly  comforts.  Isaac  knew  they 
were  going  to  ofler  a  sacrifice,  and  admiring  to 
see  no  victim,  made  inquiry  of  his  father  what 
victim  he  expected  to  offer  ?  "  God,"  replied  the 
patriarch,  "  will  provide  himself  a  lamb  for  the 
sacrifice."  Prophetic  declaration  !  This  was 
not  far  from  the  spot  where  the  Lamb  of  God, 
slain  from  the  foundation  of  the  world,  was  aftei'- 
wards  offered.     But  let  me  not  torture  your  feel- 


274  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

ings  by  approaching  too  near  this  awful  transac- 
tion, which,  excepting  Abraham  and  his  son,  none 
witnessed  but  the  all-seeing  God  and  his  invisi- 
ble angels  ;  nor  debase  a  scene,  by  imperfect  de- 
scription, which  no  words  can  paint. 

Abraham  was  prepared  to  execute  the  divine 
command,  when,  lo !  the  sovereign  voice  from 
heaven  said  unto  him,  '*  Lay  not  thiiir  hand  on  the 
lad  ;  for  now  I  know  that  thou  fearest  God,  since 
thou  hast  not  withheld  thy  son,  thine  only  son, 
from  me."  No  reprieve  was  ever  more  grateful ; 
nor  can  imagination  conceive  the  delightful  flood 
of  joy,  gratitude,  and  rapture,  which  rushed  on 
the  glorious  patriarch  at  this  august  moment.  He 
had  overcome  nature's  utmost  force,  and  come  off 
a  conqueror.  His  son  was  restored  as  from  the 
dead — his  conscience  bore  an  honourable  witness, 
and  spoke  peace — the  voice  of  God  from  heaven 
approved  him — -surrounding  angels,  if  they  saw, 
must  have  smiled  and  clapped  their  wings  in  tri- 
umph;  and,  behold,  a  lamb  caught  in  a  thicket, 
furnished  an  offering  to  his  hand  !  The  rite  per- 
formed, he  descended  the  mountain,  not  alone, 
but  with  his  dear  son  by  his  side  ;  and,  raethinks, 
he  hastened,  as  on  wings  of  lightning,  to  bear 
the  glad  news  to  his  aged  consort,  who,  if  she 
knew  what  was  depending,  waited  with  mourn- 
ful resignation  the  return  of  Abraham,  to  announce 
to  her  that  her  son  was  no  more. 

The  life  of  Abraham  would  furnish  matter  for 
not  only  one,  but  many  lectures.  But  the  ex- 
tent of  ground  necessary  to  be  surveyed,  forbids 
me  to  dwell  longer  on  this  article  ;  nor  can  we  be- 
stow proportionable  attention  on  the  history  of  the 
subsequent  patriarchs,  as  biography  is  not  so  much 
the  object  of  these  lectures  as  the  general  outline 
of  civil  historv. 


THE    HEBREW    STATE,  275 

The  patriarchs,  Isaac  and  Tacob,  with  life  and 
character  similar  to  that  of  Abraham,  engage  the 
attention  of  one  who  reads  the  sacred  history. 
Their  lives  are  full  of  passages  ijteresting  to  the 
heart  of  pious  sensibility,  and  the  simplicity  and 
force  of  the  narrative  is  without  a  parallel  in 
profane  history.  By  a  singular  concurrence  of 
events,  the  family  of  Jacob  was  removed  into 
Egypt,  1,705  years  before  the  christian  a.Ta. 
Though  consisting  then  of  but  60  or  70  persons, 
they  soon  increased,  and  became  a  nation.  When 
Jacob  was  on  his  way  into  Egypt,  God  appeared 
to  him,  in  Beerskeba,  and  proniised  to  bless  him, 
to  preserve  his  family  in  Egypt,  and  to  return 
them  to  the  land  of  promise. 

The  patriarchal  family  was  rer.eived  by  the 
king  of  Egypt  with  great  kindness.  It  is  pleasing 
to  perceive  the  hospitality,  the  noble  simplicity, 
the  kind  and  generous  attention  to  strangers, 
wdiich  marked  the  customs,  and  exalted  the  cha- 
racter, of  those,  early  limes.  Tht  po:npou3  glare 
of  ostentation,  the  idle  round  ot  ];;,  ip'd  ceremony, 
the  perpetual  change  of  false  cuir-piupients.  which 
often  die  on  the  tongue  into  (he  hisse:.  of  bjp.o- 
crisy,  were  unknown  in  those  great  and  Wvorthy 
families,  whose  politeness  was  sincerity  and 
affection. 

During  the  reign  of  that  prince,  who  had  wit- 
nessed the  virtues,  and  been  the  companion  of  Jo- 
seph, and  who  appears  himself  to  have  been  a 
wise  and  virtuous  prince,  the  family  of  Jacob 
were  held  in  esteem  and  honour.  They  obtain- 
ed an  advantageous  settlement  in  the  land  of  Go- 
shen, which  Pharaoh  told  Joseph  was  the  best 
part  of  the  country.  Beside  this  proof  of  the 
royal  favour,  Joseph  was  desired  to  select  from 
his  brethren  men  of  integrity  and   capacity  for 


276  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

business,  to  be  employed  in  the  service,  and  un- 
der the  pay  and  patronage  of  the  king,  who  had 
formed  an  exalted  opinion  of  the  whole  Hebrew 
family. 

The  prosperity  and  increase  of  the  Israelites  in 
Egypt,  and,  probably,  the  tradition  which  pre- 
vailed in  Jacob's  family,  that  thej^  should  at  some 
period  of  time  be  carried  out  of  Egypt,  and  be- 
come a  great  nation  in  Palestine,  might  have 
awakened  the  jealousy  of  the  Egyptians.  Whilst 
the  Israelites  increased  with  amazing  rapidity, 
and  were  distinct  in  iheir  manners  and  morals 
from  the  people  of  Egypt,  the. latter  grew  cor- 
rupt, and  their  governiiient  became  oppressive.  In 
building  those  vast  structures  and  enormous  public 
works,  the  tyrannical  government  of  Egypt  found 
it  convenient  to  use  them  as  servants  and  labour- 
ers. 

The  virtues  of  Joseph  were  now  remembered 
by  the  haughty  and  vvicked  princes  of  Egypt  with 
ungrateful  jealousy  ;  the  Israelites  were  vvatched, 
and,  as  by  their  numbers  and  force,  the  event  of 
their  emigration  seemed  not  far  distant,  rigorous 
bondage  was  inflicted,  and  cruel  and  sanguinary 
means  employed  to  prevent  what  Israel  antici- 
pated with  hope,  and  Egypt  with  anxiety  and 
alarm. 

Extremity  of  distress  and  oppression  some- 
times immediately  precedes  deliverance.  When 
it  was  perceived  how  rapidly  the  Hebrews  in- 
creased, notwithstanding  the  rigour  of  their  bond- 
age, an  order  was  issued  for  destroying  all  their 
male  children,  immediately  after  their  birth. 
This  horrid  mandate  was  put  in  force  with  unex- 
ampled barbarity.  This  intolerable  cruelty^ 
which,  in  the  list  of  national  sufferings,  stands 
alone  and  unrivalled,  tliey  bore  for  a  considers- 


THE    HEBREW    STATE.  277 

ble  time,  but  with  what  temper  and  feelings  ma  j 
be  easily  imagined. 

It  has  been  a  question,  whether  a  Providence 
that  may  be  called  special,  attended  the  people 
of  Israel.  The  circumstances  of  their  history 
were  more  extraordinary  than  those  of  other  na- 
tions, and,  certainly,  the  hand  of  Providence 
seems  to  have  been  more  visible.  Joseph,  the 
son  of  Jacob,  was  first  sold  into  Egypt,  where  his 
good  conduct  first  raised  him  to  favour  in  a  pri- 
vate station  ;  then,  by  his  great  virtue,  he  v/as 
thrown  into  a  dungeon  ;  from  that  depressed  state, 
he  was,  by  the  same  virtue,  exalted  near  to  the 
throne  of  Pharaoh,  and  became  a  father  to  Pha- 
raoh and  his  kingdom  :  all  Egypt,  through  him, 
was  blessed  of  God,  and  he  was  made  the  pre- 
server and   protector  of  the  chosen  race. 

In  the  period  of  history  now  before  us,  the 
deep  sorrows  and  heavy  sufferings  of  the  Israel- 
ites, prepared  a  man  to  be  the  deliverer  of  Egypt. 
Moses  was  the  son  of  Amram,  the  son  of  Kohath, 
tlie  son  of  Levi,  the  son  of  Jacob.  He  was  born 
3,573  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ,  and  132 
years  after  Jacob's  removal  into  Egypt.  It  is 
probable  that  the  parents  of  Moses  had  received 
intimations  of  his  future  destiny.  The  care  they 
took  to  save  him  from  Pharaoh's  bloody  edict, 
was  favoured,  not  by  a  common,  but  very  re- 
markable  providence.  It  threw  him  into  the  im- 
mediate family  of  the  cruel  monarch,  and  secured 
for  him  the  affection  of  Thermutis,  Pharaoh's  on- 
ly child,  and  presumptive  heir.  Under  this  pa- 
tronage, yet  in  the  bosom  of  his  own  family,  he 
ivas  cherished  and  reared  to  manhood,  with  that 
kind  of  education  which  qualified  him  for  his  ar- 
duous work. 

Strong  and  unerring  is  the  hand  of  Jehovah, 
24 


.Ziii  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

and  when  He  forms  an  instrument,  it  shall  lack 
nothing  necessary  to  the  ends  ibr  which  it  is 
made.  The  tcebl^  resistance  of  blind  mortals  is 
made  with  equal  facility  to  concur,  and  their  op- 
position and  their  aid  are  turned  alike  to  ac- 
com;)lish  the  plan  of  God.  In  no  case  does  tliis 
remark  a|)ply  with  more  resplendentevidencethan 
in  the  life  of  Moses,  and  the  redemption  of  Israel 
from  Egypt.  Joseph  was  sent  into  Egypt  through 
malice  ; — he  saved  those  who  sent  him  thither; — 
as  Pharaoh  made  strong  and  strict  the  bonds  of 
Israel's  servitude,  divine  Providence  made  bro^d 
and  open  a  way  fur  their  escape.  Moses  was 
included  in  a  bloody  edict,  intended  to  check 
the  increase  of  a  family  whom  God  had  declareid 
should  be  as  tlie  stars  of  heaven  for  multitude  ; — 
that  edict  made  him  a  prince — a  deliverer  to 
Israel — a  scourge   to  Egypt. 

The  uncommon  endowments  and  fortunes  of 
Moses  must  have  made  him  no  less  an  object  ot 
hope  to  his  own  nation,  than  of  fear  and  jealousy 
to  their  oppressors;,  and,  being  arrived  at  man- 
hood, he  was  prompted  to  take  sumi-nary  vee- 
geance  on  an  Egyptian  whom  he  saw  abusing  one 
of  his  Hebrew  brethren..  This  act  becoming 
public,  he  was  forced  to  abandon  Egypt,  and 
f'scaping  into  Arabia,  he  resided  there  forty 
years.  There  God  appeared  to  him  in  the  vision 
of  the  burning  bush,  and  commissioned  him  tQ 
return  to  Egypt,  informing  him  that  the  time  for 
the  deliverance  of  Israel  was  fully  come. 

Armed  with  a  ponerlul  rod,  with  which  after- 
wards he  pcit';>r:nrd  many  si^ns  and  wonders,  he 
repaired  to  Egypt,  appeared  before  Pliaraoh,  and 
demanded,  in  the  name  of  God.,  'he  liberation  of 
the  Hebrew  nation.  Fharaoh  rijj)lied,  that  "He 
diet  nut  know  the  Lord,  neither  would  he  ober 


THE    HEBREW     STATE.  27^ 

iiis  voice."     This  bold  and    impious  decIaratio!i 
was   follo\Yed    by    a   similar  course   of  conduct. 
The  plagues    of  Egypt   were   inflicted,   m  rnpid 
succession,  one  after  another,   without  any  salu- 
tary  effect  OH    Pharoah  ;     for    God  had   assured 
Moses  that   he  would  harden  Pharaoh's  heart.-- 
The   infamy   and  guilt    already  attached  to  this 
monster  of  cruelty,  were   peculiarly  great  ;  that 
beni,<^n  and  restraining  Providence,  which  watches 
oveA^en  for  their  good,  was  withdrawn,    and  he 
was  for  ever  abandoned  of  the  spirit  of  goodness, 
to  fill  up  the  measures  of  his  wrath.     His  bbnd- 
iiess  to  his  true  interest,  his  duty,  and  his  danger, 
was  providentially  increased  ;    and  he  was   sur- 
rendered to  the  baleful  influence  and  direction  ot 
the  powers  of  darkness,  who  seek  the  destructioa 

of  men.  .  ^ 

The  station  and  character  of  this  king  of  bgyp. 
Tendered  the  termination  of  his  course,  and  the 
history  of  his  life,  famous  ;  but  in  the  obscure 
shade  of  private  life,  many  persons  are  forsaken 
of  all  goodness,  and  are  as  truly  given  over  to 
bardne^ss  of  heart  as  he  was.  Their  fate  is  simi- 
lar to  his,  although  they  are  not,  like  him,  raised 
up  for  an  example  and  a  warning  to  mankind. 

When  the  moment  of  Israel's  departure  out  oi 
Egypt  drew  near,  the  feast  of  the  passover  was 
instituted.  They  were  commanded  to  slay  a 
Iamb  for  each  house  ;  to  sprinkle  of  its  blood 
upon  the  posts  of  their  doors  ;  to  roast  its  flesh 
with  fire,  and  to  eat  it  with  bitter  herbs.  Their 
doors  were  then  to  be  shut,  and  no  one  was  to 
go  out  abroad  till  morning,  fo?  fear  of  the  destroy- 
/  incr  angel. 

"This  was  a  solemn  night  to  the  HebreAvs,  b\u 
far  more  awful  to  the  Egyptians.  At  midnight 
a  minister  of  divine  wrath  went  forth,  and  smote 


280  ANCIENT  HISTORY. 

all  the  first  born  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  both  Jrnian 
and  beast.  Death  was  in  every  house,  and  de- 
struction stared  in  every  face.  A  cry  arose  at 
midnight ;  the  mournful  wail  and  shrieks  of  terror 
resounded  from  house  to  house,  and  from  city  to 
city.  A  scene  of  sorrow  so  heart-rending,  so  ex- 
tensive— an  alarm  so  deep  and  dreadful,  never 
fell  on  any  other  nation. 

Against  this  terrific    moment  the  Hebrews  had 
been  ordered  to  be  in  readiness  :— they  had  eaten 
the  passcver  with  their  loins  girt,    their  staves  in 
their  hand,  and  shoes  on  their  feet.     While  hor- 
rible shouts  of  terror,  and  loud  lamentations  were 
bursting,    in  every  place,  on  thp  stillness  of  mid- 
night,  the  order  was  given   to  march   in  haste. 
With  such  preparation  as  could  be  made   for  so 
extensive  and  sudden  a  movement,  the  immense 
throng  of  the  Hebrew  family  got  in  motion,  and 
proceeded  on  their  journey. 
(      They    proceeded,     by   divine    direction,  not 
in     a    line    of   march     towards    the   isthmus  of 
Suez,  but  towards  the  Ked  Sea.     Various  pur- 
poses   were   to     be   answered  by   this,   but   the 
reason  assigned  was,  that  they  might   avoid   the 
powerful  and  hostile  tribes  which  dwelt  near  the 
isthmus.     God   intended  to  give  their  departure 
an  additional  triumph    in  the  destruction  of  their 
oppressors.     A  cloud,  the  majestic  token  of  God's 
presence,    went  before    them.     They  moved    in 
haste,  but  in  perfect  security;  but  as  they  were 
now  encamping  near  the  Red  Sea,  they  perceived 
the  army  of  Pharaoh  bearing  furiously  down  upon 
them.     They  were    probably   ignorant  of  war, 
unarmed,  and  unprepared  for  battle.     The  army 
of   Egypt   in    those   days,    usually   consisted   of 
400,000  men. 

When  Pljaraoh  perceived  the  Hebrews  actually 


THE    HEBREW    STATE.  281 

leaving  his  dominions,  and  began  to  reflect  on  the 
loss  of  their  services,  and  the  diminution  of  his 
resources,  his  pride  returned,  and  ail  his  san- 
guinary passions  awoke.  He  rej^retted  what  be 
had  done,  ana  immediately  put  bis  army  in  mo- 
tion, determining,  atone  blow,  to  gratify  bis  re- 
sentment by  complete  revenge.  Especial. y  when 
he  understood,  that,  instead  of  crossing  the  isth- 
2nus  into  Asia,  they  had  gone  towards  the  Red 
Sea,  and  were  entangled  in  the  mountains,  which 
on  either  hand  rendered  their  escape  impossible. 
He  did  not  consider  that  God  was  the  God  of 
armies,  and  gives  victory  or  defeat  according  to 
his  pleasure. 

The  utmost  terror  and  confusion  spread  over 
the  Hebrew  camp  on  the  approach  of  Pharaoh, 
The  people  ran  to  Moses,  and  upbraided  him  of 
leading  them  into  a  snare  to  destroy  them.  Their 
nu-mberSj  which  were  amply  sufficient  for  de- 
fence, amounting  to  600,000  men,  were  of  no 
avail,  being  unarmed  and  undisciplined.  But 
the  cloud  which  had  led  the  host  of  Israel  sud- 
denly removed,  and  stood  between  them  and  the 
army  of  Pharaoh  ;  and  during  the  night  was  a 
piUar  of  light  to  Israel,  and  as  a  wall  of  palpable 
darkness  to  the  Egyptians.  And  Moses  said  to 
the  people,  "  Fear  ye  not,  stand  still  and  see  the 
salvation  of  the  Lord." 

And  Moses  stretched  out  his  rod  over  the  sea, 
and  it  was  divided.  It  is  impossible  to  conceive 
of  the  awful  grandeur  of  this  scene.  The  divi- 
sion of  the  sea  is  represented  as  somewhat  pro- 
gressive, and  by  the  agency  of  wind.  An  army 
marching  on  dry  land,  between  two  walls  of  wa- 
ter, was  a  stupendous  display  of  divine  power, 
though  the  water  was  probably  carried  to  a  dis- 
tance. For  three  millions  of  people  to  pass  in  a 
24* 


282  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

body  sufficiently  expanded  to  carry  them  over  in 
a  few  hours,  the  path  must  have  been  wide  ;  pro- 
bably, several  miles.  The  Egyptians  seem  to 
have  entered  the  sea  in  the  night ;  for,  *'  in  the 
morning  watch,  the  Lord  looked  upon  the  host 
of  the  Egyptians,  and  troubled  them,  and  took  off 
their  charriot  wheels."  As  the  daylight  dawned 
they  probably  became  acquainted  with  their  dan- 
ger, and  attempted  a  retreat.  But,  ah!  it  was 
too  late.  Their  retreat  was  impeded,  and  soon 
cut  off  by  the  return  of  the  sea.  The  roaring 
flood  swept  them  away  :  not  one  of  them  escaped; 
So  perfectly  is  that  work  accomplished  which 
eternal  Providence  undertakes. 

The  song  which  Moses  and  the  people  of  Israel 
sang  in  consequence  of  their  great  deliverance,  is 
an  exalted' strain  of  thanksgiving,  gratitude,  and 
devotion,  worthy  of  that  sacred  inspiration  to 
which  it  holds  an  indisputable  claim.  "  I  will 
sing  unto  the  Lord,  for  he  hath  triumphed  glori- 
ously ;  the  horse  and  his  rider  hath  he  thrown  in- 
to the  sea.  The  Lord  is  a  man  of  war,  the  Lord 
is  his  name." 

Three  months  after  the  departure  of  Moses  frorn 
Egypt,  he  arrived  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Sinai,  in 
Arabia,  and  encamped  his  numerous  host  before 
that  mountain,  consecrated  through  all  ages  by 
the  fame  and  majesty  of  the  events  which  there 
occurred.  At  every  turn  of  this  eventful  history, 
we  are  astonished  with  new  wonders — we  are  in- 
structed with  new  rays  of  light  and  glory. 

It  seems  to  have  been  in  consequence  of  man's 
apostacy,  that  the  Almighty  God  determined  to 
reveal  himself  to  his  creatures,  not  only  as  the 
creator,  preserver,  and  governor  of  all,  but  as 
the  redeemer  and  saviour  of  sinners.  But  favour 
to  rebels  could  not  be  shown  in  violation  of  th« 


THE    HEBREW    STATE.  283 

tjaim  oi'justice.  Previous,  therefore,  to  an  atone- 
mont,  aa  exhibition  of  the  divine  law  was  neces- 
sa>y :  and  as  the  Messiah  was  to  be  the  son  oi 
Abraham,  to  that  distinguished  family  the  dispen- 
sations of  truth  were  made,  and  the  oracles  of 
God  committed. 

inspired  eloquence  alone  can  do  justice  to  the 
fiassafjfe  of  historv  now  before  us  ;  and  it  would 
?ieed  inspiration  as  well  to  conceive,  as  to  de- 
cvibe,  the  Almighty  Jehovah  descending  on 
Mount  binai,  and  giving  law  to  a  nation.  Behold 
three  millions  of  people,  like  an  ocean,  spread  out 
at  tne  foot  of  the  mountain,  solemn,  pale,  and 
'rembling — every  eye  iixed  :  what  silence — what 
terror — vvbat  astonishment  1  A  cloud  of  fearful 
iieight,  and  frowning  darkne.-s,  hovers  on  the 
mount — a  cloud  eniolding,  and,  at  times,  dis- 
ciofing  ineffable  brightness.  The  world  is  shaken 
hy  thunders — lightnings  dart  their  awful  blaze  ; 
and  the  dreadful  voice  of  a  trumpet,  with  strong, 
protracted  blast,  announced  the  presence  of  the 
Eternal  Power!  At  length  the  thunders  were 
hushed — the  voice  of  the  trumpet  ceased — and  a 
voice  from  the  intolerable  splendours  of  consum- 
ing flames — a  voice,  wiiich  conveyed  more  terror 
ihan  the  trumpet,  or  thunder,  or  earthquake,  pro- 
nounced the  ten  precepts  of  the  decalogue,  com- 
monly called  the  Moral  Law. 

Bloses  ascended  the  mountain,  and,  amidst  this 
awful  display  of  divine  glory,  received  from  the 
hand  of  God  two  tables  of  stone,  on  which  the  ten 
•  'ommands  were  engraved.  Beside  these,  he  re- 
f^eived  a  body  of  ceremonial  and  municipal  laws, 
adapted  to  the  Ilebrew  state  and  nation.  These 
iaws  contain  plenary  evidence  of  their  divine 
origin.  Their  purity,  dignity,  and  wisdom^ 
.^hun-i^ntly  evince  their  inspiration  j  and  they  are 


~B4  ANdlEM    HlsrORY. 

the  fountain  whence  the  wisest  nations  in  the 
world  have  derived  iheir  best  laws  and  ablest 
systems  of  jurisprudence. 

The  symbols  of  divine  glory  disappeared,  it  is 
probable,  soon  after  the  Decalogue  was  pronoun- 
ced. But  Moses  was  detained  in  the  mount  40 
days.  This  long  and  unexpected  absence  of  Moses 
began  to  give  rise  to  various  conjectures,  and  ex- 
cite tumults  in  the  Hebrew  camp.  Concluding 
he  might  never  return,  with  a  fickleness  and  in- 
fidelity truly  astonishing,  they  determined  to  go 
back  to  Egypt.  Regardless  of  the  rigorous  bond- 
age  they  had  suffered,  or  might  again  suffer  there  ; 
forgetful  of  the  plagues  which  had  fal'en  on  Egypt 
on  their  account,  and  of  their  unparalleled  delive- 
rance at  the  Red  Sea;  and,  especially,  unmind- 
ful of  the  terrible  and  glorious  manifestation  of 
God,  so  recently  made  on  the  mountain  so  near 
them,  they  called  on  Aaron,  whose  authority  was 
next  to  that  of  Moses,  to  make  for  them  a  golden 
calf;  an  image,  probably,  of  the  god  Apis,  whom 
the  Egyptians  worshipped. 

When  they  had  now  consummated  this  horrible 
act  of  rebellion  and  idolatry,  God  apprised  Mo- 
ses of  their  defection,  and  threatened  suddenly 
to  destroy  them.  Moses,  with  great  anxiety, 
hastened  down  the  mountain,  carrying  the  tables 
of  stone  in  his  hand.  When  he  approached  the 
camp,  and  saw  them  dancing  before  the  image 
Avith  songs  and  shouts  of  joy  and  exultation,  en- 
raged at  their  miserable  infatuation,  and  infamous 
revolt,  he  threw  the  tables  out  of  his  hand,  and 
dashed  them  in  pieces,  at  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tain. 

There  seems  to  be  no  excuse  for  Aaron's  con- 
duct in  this  atrocious  business ;  nor  did  he  at- 
lempt  to  make  one.     VVhen  Moses  demanded  hovy 


THE  HEBREW  STATE.  285 

he  came  to  hearken  to  the  voice  of  the  people, 
and  comply  with  their  impious  request,  in  reply, 
he  simply  stated  the  fact,  without  vindication. 
God  was  greatly  offended  with  Aaron,  but,  at  the 
request  of  Moses,  he  was  pardoned ;  as  were  also 
the  congregation  for  their  most  criminal  rebel- 
lion. 

With  equal  interest  and  pleasure  we  might 
trace  the  history  of  this  people  to  their  settle- 
ment in  the  land  of  promise.  But  the  shortness 
of  the  time  allowed  for  this  lecture  warns  me  to 
lay  before  you  a  more  general  and  rapid  view  of 
the  Hebrew  history. 

They  lay  about  nine  months  before  Mount 
Sinai,  during  which  time  every  direction  neces- 
i>ary  to  their  journey,  their  treatment  of  other 
nations,  their  entrance  into  Canaan,  their  settle- 
ment, and  whole  future  conduct  was  given.  Their 
order  of  march  was  prescribed,  and  the  men 
capable  of  bearing  arms  were  embodied,  armed, 
officered,  and,  in  a  degree,  disciplined.  Instead 
of  a  huge  unwieldy  mass  of  people  they  now 
appeared,  in  great  order,  moving  under  military 
standards  and  signals.  No  army  ever  moved 
with  more  regularity,  or  equal  majesty.  They 
proceeded  in  four  great  divisions,  each  com- 
prehending three  tribes.  The  tabernacle,  the 
priesthood,  pretorium,  and  great  officers  were  near 
the  centre,  whilst  the  four  grand  divisions  formed 
a  kind  of  hollow  square  surrounding  them  on 
every  side. 

God  was  their  king,  and  the  angel  of  his  pre- 
sence went  before  them,  wrapped  in  awful 
darkness,  and  covered  in  a  cloud,  which  in  the 
night  became  a  pillar  of  fire.  The  heavens 
rained  bread  about  their  camp,  the  rocks  of  the 
desert  gave  them  water ;  the  deadly  vapour 
which  slumbers  on   arid    plains   couid   not  hurt 


286  ANCIENT   IIISTOUY. 

them,  vind  they  were    taught  to  heal  the  bite  of 
the  serpent  by  a  glance  of  the  eye. 

But  from  Sinai  a  march  of  a  few  days  brought 
them  to  Canaan  ?  No  !  In  the  wilderness  of 
Arabia  they  wandered  forty  years,  and  not  a 
man  who  came  out  of  Egypt  with  Moses,  except- 
ing Caleb  and  Joshua,  entered  the  land  of  Canaan. 
They  had  indeed  proceeded  successfully  to  the 
borders  of  Canaan,  and  a  delegation  of  twelve 
men  were  sent  as  spies  to  explore  the  country. 
Ten  of  these  men  brought  back  an  account 
which  alarmed  and  discouraged  the  w^hole  con- 
gregation ;  wherefore,  revolting  from  Moses,  they 
again  took  the  resolution  to  return  to  Egypt, 
when  the  fearful  sentence  w^as  declared  that  they 
should  die  in  the  wilderness. 

In  the  lapse  of  40  years,  filled  with  revolt, 
insurrection,  and  misery,  this  sentence  was  ex- 
ecuted, and  Moses  himself,  who  had  offended 
God  at  the  waters  of  Meribah,  was  forbidden  to 
go  into  Canaan,  although,  his  administration  con- 
tinued till  the  august  moment  arrived,  when  the 
Hebrew  nation  w  as  to  pass  over  Jordan  into  the 
promised  land.  Moses  ascended  a  iiigh  moun- 
tain, from  whose  summit  be  saw,  in  one  exten- 
sive prospect,  the  hills  and  valleys  of  that  beauti- 
ful country,  called  the  glory  of  all  lands.  In 
the  opposite  direction  lay  the  Arabian  desert, 
and  the  devious  path  where  he  had  been  wander- 
ing 40  years  with  a'  rebellious  people.  They 
were  gone,  and  their  bones  rested  in  the  desert. 
At  the  foot  of  the  mountain  lay  the  camp  of 
Israel,  and  the  people,  who  saw  him  ascend,  and 
knew  he  was  never  to  return,  had  bedewed  this 
final  farewell  v/ith  floods  of  tears.  Who  ever 
stood  in  a  situation  more  solemn,  more  interesting, 
than   Moses  on    the    top  of  Pisgah  ?  With  calm 


THE  HEBREW  STATE.  287 

resiiinalion  to  providence,  with  triumphant  faith 
in  God,  he  there  closed  his  eyes  on  mortal  scenes, 
and  in  a  moment  penetrated  the  veil  that  hides 
the  bright  and  blessed  vision  of  eternal  glory. 

No  mortal  ever  finished  a  career  of  greater 
usefulness  to  men,  of  more  honour  to  God,  of 
more  intrinsic  worth  or  awful  splendour.  God 
himself  declared  that  Moses  was  not  a  prophet, 
for  he  was  more  than  a  prophet :  he  was 
the  immediate  agent  or  vicegerent  of  God,  in 
a  mission,  which  was  inferior  to  none  but  that 
of  the  Messiah.  The  law  was  given  by  Moses, 
but  grace  and  truth  came  by  Jesus  Christ. 

Joshua  succeeded  Moses  in  his  high  command, 
and  in  those  great  and  special  endowments 
necessary  to  complete  the  settlement  of  the 
nation  of  Israel,  in  that  country  which  was  pro- 
mised to  their  fathers.  He  immediately  crossed 
the  river  Jordan,  and  crushing  all  opposition,  he 
subjugated  the  nations  of  Canaan,  and,  marking 
out  the  particular  inheritance  of  the  tribes  by  lot, 
before  his  death,  he  saw  the  nation  of  Israel 
settled  in  peace,  flourishing,  independent,  and 
happy. 

'J'o  those  who  acknowledge  the  divine  right  to 
punish  and  destroy  wicked  nations,  as  well  as  to 
select  the  instruments  by  which  that  work  shall 
be  accomplished,  there  is  no  difiiculty  in  vindica- 
ting this  invasion  and  extermination  of  the  nation 
of  Canaan.  If  the  divine  governor  has  a  right  to 
destroy  cities  or  nations  by  earthquakes,  famine, 
or  pestilence,  he  certainly  has  an  equal  right  to 
accomplish  the  same  work  by  the  instrumentality 
of  other  nations.  The  writer  of  the  history  ot 
modern  Europe  boldly  and  blasphemously  de- 
clares, that  *'  the   God    of  Moses    delighted  in 


"288  AJfCIENT    HISTORY. 

cruelty  and  blood;"  an  observation  which  ouglj' 
to  be  expected  from  none  but  an  atheist. 

From  the  entrance  of  Joshua  into  the  land  of 
Canaan,  till  the  accession  of  Saul  to  the  kingdom 
of  Israel,  was  376  years.  The  sacred  history 
gives  us  but  an  imperfect  sketch  of  this  period. 
Fifteen  judges,  either  successive  or  collateral,  aid- 
ed in  the  government  of  Israel,  betw^een  the 
administration  of  Moses,  and  the  accession  of 
Saul :  Joshua,  Othniel,  Ehud,  Shamgar,  Deborah, 
Gideon,  Abimelech,  Tola,  Jair,  Jeptha,  Ibzau. 
Elon,  Abdon,  Samson,  and  Samuel.  Several  of 
these,  in  different  parts  of  the  country,  governed 
at  the  same  time,  during  the  priesthood  of  Eli 
and  Samuel. 

Under  the  administration  of  the  judges,  thf^ 
Hebrew  nation  discovered  a  strong  and  constant 
propensity  to  the  religion  of  the  surrounding  na- 
tions ;  and  were  often  guilty  of  idolatry.  They 
had  frequent  wars  with  the  neighbouring  nations, 
and  some  civil  wars  ;  were  elevated  and  de- 
pressed, and  experienced  the  usual  vicissitude  of 
human  affairs ;  but  they  gradually  grew  more 
powerful  by  the  extent  of  territory,  increase  of 
wealth,  and  general  improvement.  Lowman, 
in  his  learned  essays  on  the  civil  government  of 
the  Hebrews,  has  shoun  the  superior  wisdom 
of  their  municipal  regulations  and  moral  laws. 
To  that  work,  incomparable  in  its  kind,  those 
may  safely  be  referred  who  desire  thoroughly  to 
investigate  this  subject. 

During  this  period  of  the  history  of  the  He- 
brews, their  government  is  called  by  some  s. 
Theocracy.  God  was  their  supreme  mora)  ruler, 
as  he  is  of  all  other  nations  ;  but  he  was  more 
than  this  to  the  people  of  Israel  ;  he  was  thei: 
itolilical  head,   their  civil  governor,   their  kii),2. 


THE    HEBREW    STATE.  289 

This  he  had  promised  to  Abraham  :   *'  I  will  be 
their  God,  and  they  shall  be  my  people." 

When,  therefore,  under  Samuel's  administra- 
tion, the  people  requested  a  king  to  be  set  over 
them,  God  was  displeased,  and  told  Samuel 
that  they  had  rejected  Him  from  being  their  king. 
They  desired  their  throne  might  be  taken  from 
God,  and  occupied  by  a  man.  The  divine 
government  was  too  pure,  just,  and  wise  ;  they 
wished  for  something  more  licentious,  more  cor- 
rupt, and  suited  to  their  depraved  character  and 
inclination. 

Saul  was  elevated  to  the  throne  in  the  year 
1,075  before  Christ.  This  deterioration  and  fall 
of  the  Hebrew  government  took  place  at  the 
time  when  the  Grecian  states  showed  marks  of 
increasing  light  and  wisdom  ;  for  about  this  time 
the  system  of  despotic  government  was  abolished 
in  the  states  of  Greece,  and  the  republican  form 
was  introduced ;  yet  Jehovah  did  not  reject  this 
chosen  people,  though  they  had  rejected  him 
from  being  their  king,  and  showed  an  equal  de- 
sire to  reject  him  likewise  as  their  God. 

Saul  conducted  like  most  despotic  princes;  he 
began  well,  but  soon  relapsed  into  violence, 
liscentiousness,  and  oppression.  He  was  re- 
proved, and  chastised,  having  the  advantage  and 
patronage  of  the  greatest  and  wisest  of  all  the  He- 
brew judges,  to  direct  his  counsels,  and  aid  his 
inexperience.  But  Saul  was,  at  length,  rejected, 
and  the  throne  reverted  from  the  tribe  of  Benja- 
min to  that  of  Judah.  David,  the  son  of  Jesse, 
who  was  in  the  sacred  line  of  the  Messiah,  next 
assumed  the  government.  David  was  one  of  the 
greatest  of  princes  ;  equally  able  in  peace  and 
war,  to  direct  a  nation,  to  secure  advantages,  and 
repel  dangers.  Under  his  reign,  the  kingdom  of 
25 


290  ANCIENT   HISTORV. 

Israel  acquired  its  utmost  height.  All  western 
Asia  submitted  to  his  arms,  and  he  reigned  in 
great  glory  over  Syria  and  Palestine. 

Though  David's  character  was  stained  by 
crimes,  and  his  house  and  kingdom  disturbed  by 
severe  calamities,  yet  he  transmitted  his  extensive 
dominions  to  Solomon,  his  son,  under  whose  pa- 
cific administration  the  famous  temple  was  erect- 
ed at  Jerusalem,  and  the  kingdom  of  Israel  freed 
from  wars,  and  governed  by  a  prince  of  unparal- 
leled wisdom,  now  appeared  in  its  greatest 
•splendour. 

The  balance  of  human  affairs  seldom  long 
maintain  a  perfect  equilibrium.  Towards  the 
close  of  Solomon's  long  reign  it  began  to  fluctuate, 
and  Rehoboam,  his  son  and  successor,  a  weak  and 
contemptible  prince,  dashed  to  the  sround  a  cup 
of  blessings  which  had  now  overflow.n  for  nearly 
a  century.  Jeroboam,  the  son  of  Nebat,  raised 
a  rebellion,  and  ten  tribes  revolted  from  the  house 
of  David,    leaving  only  Judah  and  Benjamin. 

'j'he  kiHgdom  of  Israel,  as  it  was  now  called, 
in  distinctton  from  that  of  Judah,  in  revolting 
from  the  house  of  David,  also  revolted  from  the 
worship  of  God  ;  and  from  this  period  to  their 
captivity  and  subversion,  their  course  was  uni- 
form. They  maintained  almost  perpetual  war 
M'ith  the  successors  of  David,  and  were  in  no 
de':^ree  distini^uished  from  the  heathen  nations, 
ijnfees  by  greater  advantages,  deeper  guilt  and 
in^^ratitude.  The  kingdom  of  Israel,  however, 
maint:iined  its  independence  252  years  from  this 
revoU.  At  length,  invaded,  as  noticed  in  our 
Assyrian  lecture,  by  Sahnanazer,  king  of  Assyria, 
the  country  was  laid  waste,  the  cities  and  vil- 
hv^cs  destroyed,  the  capital,  Samaria,  after  a 
sie^o  of  mure   than  two  years,  was  destroyed. 


THE     HEBREW    STATE.  291 

nnJ  the  whole  people,  who  had  escaped  the  ra^ 
vages  of  this  exterminating  war,  were  carried 
into  captivity  to  the  remote  parts  of  Bledia, 
whence  they  never  returned. 

The  kingdom  of  Judah  now  stood  alone,  like 
a  tree  whose  trunk  is  rifted  by  the  bolts  of  hea- 
ven, and,  deprived  of  its  most  numerous  and 
spreading  branches — its  beauty  is  defaced,  its 
verdure  faded,  and  it  totters  to  its  fall.  God  had 
promised  them  protection,  if  they  kept  his 
statutes  ;  nor  was  it  possible  for  them  not  to  per- 
ceive how  clearly,  how  strongly,  this  promise  had 
been  fulfilled.  The  fate  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel 
thundered  in  their  ears,  but  they  were  deaf; — 
the  course  of  providence,  with  terrible  convic- 
tion, shone  with  awful  brightness  ;  but  they 
would  not  see.  They  were  accused  of  idolatry, 
profaneness,  and  breach  of  the  sabbath. 

But  the  people  of  Judah  were  sent  into  cap- 
tivity,nvhere  they  remained  70  years  ;  and  their 
return  from  that  state  closes  the  sacred  history  of 
ih^Old  Testament.  The  edict  for  the  restoration 
of  the  Jews  was  given  by  Cyrus,  on  the  first  year 
of  his  accession  to  the  empire  of  Asia.  It  was 
many  years  after  this  before  the  captivity  was  re- 
stored, the  temple  rebuilt,  and  the  new  order  of 
the  Jewish  state  established.  By  continual  in- 
trigues, carried  on  at  the  Persian  court,  the  affairs 
of  the  Jews  were  embarrassed  and  retarded.  The 
elevation  of  Esther  to  the  imperial  throne  of  Per- 
sia, greatly  promoted  their  interest ;  and  the  wis- 
dom of  Daniel  and  his  three  friends,  and  the  sur- 
prising triumph  of  Mordecai,  the  Jew,  over  Ha- 
man,  produced  an  extensive  influence  in  their 
favour. 

But  when  the  Persian  empire  fell  under  the 
power  of  Alexander  the  Great,    the  Jews   were 


292  ANCIENT   HISTORY.  ' 

exposed  to  the  arbitrary  and  violent  councils  of 
the  Grecian  dynasty  of  the  Seleucidffi.  The  set- 
tlement of  Alexander's  empire  exposed  the  feeble 
and  defenceless  state  of  the  Jews  to  desolating 
and  ruinous  invasions.  The  several  rival  kings 
in  Egypt,  Syria,  and  Macedon,  made  incursions 
on  each  other,  and  all  the  countries  within  the 
reach  of  their  armies  were,  from  time  to  time, 
swept  over  with  the  besom  of  war.  In  one  of 
these  hostile  enterprises,  Ptolemy  Soter  poured 
his  forces  into  Judea,  and  sacked  Jerusalem, 
though  Alexander  himself  had  spared  the  city, 
from  reverence  to  the  God  who  was  worshipped 
there. 

But  from  the  kings  of  Syria  the  Jews  received 
the  greatest  indignities,  and  experienced  the  most 
severe  and  protracted  sufferings.  Antiochus  Epi- 
phanes  took  and  plundered  Jerusalem,  put  many 
of  its  inhabitants  to  the  sword,  profaned  the  tem- 
ple, and  interdicted,  on  pain  of  death,  the  wor- 
ship of  the  true  God. 

A  man  appeared,  at  this  period  of  extreme  de- 
pression, whose  name  has  been  famous  in  every 
subsequent  age.  Matthias,  a  priest,  who  dwelt 
in  an  obscure  village  of  Judea,  retired  with  his 
five  sons,  one  of  whom  was  the  famous  Judas 
Maccabseus,  into  a  secret  place  of  rendezvous,  and 
collecting  a  small  force,  he  at  length  made  head 
against  the  Syrian  army.  Matthias  and  his  sonSj 
for  many  years,  repelled  the  Syrians,  and  per- 
formed prodigies  of  valour,  scarcely  equalled  in 
the  annals  of  history. 

But  we  cannot  proceed  to  further  details.  The 
time  between  the  restoration  of  the  captivity  and 
the  birth  of  Christ,  was  long,  dreary,  and  of  little 
comfort  to  the  Jewish  state.  The  Persians  and 
Greeks,  and,  at  length,  the  Romans,  from  time  to 


THE    HEBREW    STATE. 


293 


time,  exercised  cruelties,  and  heaped  indignities 
upon  them.  The  period  of  their  glory  and  hap- 
piness was  past.  Whatever  they  suffered  from 
foreign  states,  they  were  still  severer  sufferers 
from  internal  broils  and  factions.  The  cause  of 
all  their  sufferings  was  one  and  the  same — a  de- 
parture from  the  law  and  covenant  of  their  God. 

Yet,  in  the  rapid  revolutions  of  the  great  pow- 
ers which  lay  round  them,  they  sometimes  had 
respite,  and  under  the  indirect  influence  of  the 
civil  wars  of  Rome,  Judea  became  a  state  of  con- 
siderable importance,  and  the  perfidious  and  san- 
guinary Herod  obtained  an  extensive  fame  lor 
policy  and  for  arms. 

But  this  prince  was  suddenly  alarmed  by  the 
arrival   of  persons   drest   in  the  habit  of  sages, 
from  the  east,  who  declared  they  had  seen  a  star 
in  the  east,  indicating  the  birth  of  a  great  person- 
age ;  and  that   they   had  come  to  worship    him, 
who  was  born  king  of  the  Jews.     Herod  and  his 
court  heard  this  intelligence  with   great   sensibi- 
lity, and  as  an  opinion  was  prevalent  that  the 
great  Measiah  was  about  to  make  his  appearance. 
Herod  was  filled  with  apprehension,  and  6nding 
-   Bethlehem    to   be    the    predicted   birth-place   of 
this   personage,   he  determined  to  make  sure  of 
his   victim,    by   the  destruction  of  all  the  infants 
of  that  region.     Like  a  second  Pharaoh,  he  per- 
petrated that  horrid  act  ;  striking  at  random  to 
make  sure  of  an  uncertain  mark. 

O  ambition  I  on  what  horrid  crimes  dost  thou 
not  push  thy  votaries  !  what  a  retribution  hast 
ihou  in  store  for  mankind  ! 

The  Son  of  God  was  indeed  born,  and  his  birth 

bad  been  celebrated  in  heaven,  and  announced  by 

angels  to  the  earth,  but  he  was  conveyed  bej-ond 

the  shafts  of  this  bloody  tyrant.      To  him  the 

^5* 


294  ANCIENT    HISTORY. 

rites  and  sacrifices  of  the  law  all  pointed  ;  in  him 
the  types  and  shadows  were  all  to  be  fulfilled; 
for  his  sake  the  tribe  of  Judah  had  been  pre- 
served, and  the  Jewish  economy  brought  down 
from  distant  antiquity,  through  the  collisions  and 
dissolution  of  the  mightiest  empires. 

His  life  was  perfect,  his  doctrine  was  divine, 
but  his  kingdom  was  not  of  this  world.  The 
law  which  on  Mount  Sinai  he  proclaimed  with  a 
voice  of  thunder,  he  now  came  to  obey— to  fulfil 
— to  satisfy — to  magnify.  His  life  was  a  course 
of  perfect  obedience  ;  his  precepts  contained  a 
complete  system  of  moral  instruction  ;  and  his 
sufferings  made  atonement  for  sin — for  his  nature 
was  divine  as  well  as  human. 

On  the  cross  he  sustained  the  entire  penalty  of 
the  divine  law.  To  this,  all  nature,  through  all 
her  departments,  gave  awful  and  resistless  testi- 
mony. The  sun  was  darkened — the  rocks  were 
rent — the  earth  was  shaken.  In  the  grave,  and 
under  the  power  of  death,  his  humiliation  was 
complete,  and  was  finished.  Death  could  not 
hold  him  who  had  triumphed  over  sin.  He  rose 
from  the  dead^ — showed  himself  to  a  multitude  of 
witnesses — ascended  iii  glory  to  the  throne  of  the 
universe,  where  he  now  reigns.  He  is  the 
blessed  and  only  potentate,  the  king  of  kings, 

AND  LORD  OF  LORDS. 

His  empire  is  all  worlds  ;  His  subjects  are  all 
creatures :  his  kingdom  is  immutable  ;  his  reign 
is  eternal. 

In  twelve  lectures  we  have  glanced  an  eye  at 
the  kingdoms,  states,  and  revolutions  of  antiquity. 
They  took  somewhat  more  time  in  their  actual 
accomplishment  than  I  have  taken  in  this 
desultory  survey.  But  how  unstable  are  all 
human  concerns !  tbey  are  like  passing  billows^^ 


THE  HEBREW  STATE.  2ti 

like  the  dream  of  night.  There  is  but  one 
kingdom  whose  glories  are  immutable  —the  king- 
dom of  the  b'esoed  God  :  there  is  but  onj  victory 
whose  laurels  shal]  never  Tide — a  victory  over 
sin :  there  is  but  one  moral  affection  w^hjch  shall 
cover  the  soul  with  glory,  and  enlighten  it  with 
eternal  sunshine — pure  benevolence. 


GENIUS  AND  TASTfi. 


GENIUS  AND  TASTE. 


ALLEGORY. 


FOUNDED  IK 


THE  HISTORY  OF  ANCIENT  LITERATURE. 


PREFACE. 


If  every  part  of  a  metaphor  cannot  be  sup- 
posed to  be  precisely  adapted  to  the  subject  in- 
ended  to  be  illustrated  by  it,  it  is,  doubtless, 
far  more  true  of  an  allegory,  which  is  but  a  me- 
taphor extended,  or,  perhaps,  more  properly 
speaking,  a  series  of  metaphors.  The  ingenu- 
ous criiic  will  also  observe,  that  this  difficulty 
is  not  diminished  in  allegories  of  a  historical  na- 
ture, where  a  narrative,  in  order  to  be  continu- 
ous and  complete,  must  consist  in  parts,  which, 
perhaps,  no  force  of  invention  can  adapt  to  the 
main  object  of  the  allegory  ;  in  which  a  resem- 
blance in  the  general  outline  and  principal  parts 
is  the  most  that  can  be  desired  or  expected. 


f6 


GENIUS  AND  TASTE,  &c. 


Genius  was  born  in  Egypt,  towards  the  close 
«f  that  happy  period  when  the  Gods  swayed 
the  sceptre  over  men.a  He  was  the  youngest 
son  of  iVIercury  ;•»  bui,  as  his  mother  was  an  Egyp- 
tian iady,  it  seemed  for  awhile  doubtful  whe- 
ther the  ethereal  essence  of  divinity  would  pre- 
dominate in  his  constitution,  or  whether,  like  his 
mother,  he  would  be  mortal. 

No  sooner  had  he  forsaken  his  cradle,  than  he 
began  to  manifest  extraordinary  endowments. 
His  surpassing  beauty  attracted  no  less  the  ad- 
miration of  the  multitude,  than  did  his  piercing 
eye  and  lofty  mind  the  envy  and  jealousy  of  his 
elder  brothers,*^  of  which  he  had  many.  His 
surprising  progress  in  every  accomplishment,  and 
the  increasing  partiality  of  his  father,  seemed  to 
foretell  his  future  accession  to  the  throne  of 
Egypt. 

As  might  be  expected,  therefore,  a  plot  was 
laid  for  his  destruction ;  and,  indeed,  through 
some  infelicity,  either  in  the  climate  or  his  man- 
ner of  life,^  he  seemed  to  be  sickly.  He  was 
probably  formed  for  too  much  activity  and  ex- 


304  GENIUS  AND    TASTE. 

ertion,  to  flourish  under  the  relaxing  arJouii  oi 
an  African  sun.e 

Mercury,  at  length,  though  with  great  reluc- 
tance, yielded  to  the  inriperious  dictrites  of  ne- 
cessity, and,  calling  to  him  his  favourite  son, 
signified  to  him  that  he  must  leave  his  native 
country.  He  gave  him  all  necessary  instructions 
for  his  perigrinations,  which  he  foref-aw  would  be 
extensive  Then,  taking  him  into  his  wardrobe, 
he  clothed  him  in  a  dress  suited  to  the  dignity  of 
his  rank,  and  the  nature  of  his  travels,  and  hav- 
ing assured  him  of  iiis  perpetual  affection  and 
paternal  remembrance,  he  ordered  him  to  proceed 
on  his  journey. 

Kis  under-dress  was  of  the  purest  white,  over 
which  he  wore  a  robe  of  light  azure,  bespangled 
with  stars ;  and  it  was  the  peculiar  advantage 
of  this  dress  that  it  would  never  tarnish  or  de- 
cay/ As  Genius  had  been  educated  in  the  same 
school  with  the  children  of  Mars  and  Apollo,  he 
was  a  proficient  in  all  the  graces  of  the  palestrae, 
in  all  gymnastic  exercises,?  and  he  understood 
the  use  of  every  weapon  ;  yet  he  took  none  with 
him  but  a  bow  and  quiver,  whose  arrows  were 
never  to  be  exhausted.  These  he  could  use,  if 
necessary,  for  his  support  h  or  defence,  and,  at 
all  times,  for  his  amusement.i  A  garlsnd  of  laurel 
and  amaranthus  covered  his  head,  and  shaded  his 
temples. 

Thus  equipped.  Genius  forsook  Egypt,  and 
travelled  eastward^  In  crossing  the  Isthmus  of 
Suez,  he  first  fell  among  the  Hebrew  nation, 
inhabiting  the  land  of  Canaan.  He  there  left 
some  monuments  of  the  grandeur  of  his  mind,*  and, 
indeed,  had  he  not  been  destined  to  visit  greater 
nations,  and  to  extf-nd  his  influence  over  larger 
portions  of   mankind,    he    seems  to  have  been 


AN    ALLEGORY.  305 

willing  to  have  made  there  a  permanent  resi- 
dence. 

Genius  made  no  stay  in  Arabia  or  Assyria.  In 
his  rapid  excursion  through  those  nations,  he 
merely  scattered  some  rude  characters  of  Egyptian 
science,  and  posted  on  to  Persia,  from  which  he 
was  in  equal  haste  to  be  gone.'"  When  he  crossed 
the  river  Indus,  he  found  himself  so  much  disgust- 
ed with  a  supine  effeminate  people,  that  he  pro- 
cured himself  transported  through  all  India  in  a 
covered  chariot,  that  he  might  escape  imperti- 
nence," and  expedite  his  journey. 

He  proceeded  on  to  China  ;  but  what  reception 
he  met  with  there,  how  long;  he  remained,  or  with 
whom  he  cultivated  an  intimacy,  history  does  not 
determine.  The  most  we  can  learn  of  his  adven- 
tures in  that  country  is,  that  he  met  with  great 
opposition  from  several  powerful  champions, 
called,  if  I  mistake  not.  Prejudice,  Ignorance, 
Economyj  Experience,  and  Habit-  These  pow- 
erful demagogues  formed  a  junto,  and  placed  Ex- 
perience at  their  head,"  which  combination, 
though,  perhaps,  accidental  at  first,  grew,  at 
length,  into  an  institution  of  such  extent  and  so- 
lidity, as  for  ever  to  hold  the  human  mind  in  ab- 
ject slavery,? 

While  Genius  was  deliberating  whither  he 
should  next  direct  his  course,  he  received  advices 
from  his  father  recommending  his  return  to 
Greece.  Without  regret,  therefore,  he  abandon- 
ed a  country  in  which  he  had  long  repined,  and 
often  sickened  ;  where  the  calm  and  fertile  plains 
of  Asia,  loaded  with  the  cumbrous  pomp  of  luxu- 
rious magnificence,  were  likely  to  inebriate  the 
mind,  and  rouse  into  action  nothing  but  the  am- 
bition of  conquerors,  and  to  give  sharpness  and 
26* 


306  GENIUS   AND    TASTE. 

vi2;our  to   nothing   but    the    terrors  of    despotic 
power. 1 

ih)  now  felt  al!  his  powers  revive  as  he  ap- 
proached the  lofty  hills  and  delightful  valleys  of 
Greece.  His  form  acquired  new  beauties,  and. 
his  robps  additional  lustre,  whiie  he  hastened  to 
be  introduced  to  the  Muses,  whom,  as  yet,  he  had 
never  ^een.  Calliope  and  Clio  were  delegated 
fiom  that  lovely  circle  to  welcome  his  arrival.'" 
They  met  him  at  the  foot  of  Parnassu?,  and  with 
cordial  salutation,  fascinating  smiles  and  com- 
pliments, offered  to  conduct  him  to  the  summit, 
where  the  rest  of  the  Pierian  sisters  were  wait- 
ing to  receive  him. 

But  Geniu-%  mindful  of  the  instructions  of  his 
divine  parent,  modestly  declined,  for  the  present, 
so  distinguished  an  honor  ;  preferring  an  intro- 
duction to  them  singly,  and  less  formal.  This  he 
begged  might  be  accomplished  by  Calliope,  from 
time  to  time,  as  she  saw  him  duly  prepared  for 
the  mterview.  For,  indeed,  the  free,  noble,  and 
sprightly  air  of  that  immortal  nymph  had  deeply 
engaged  the  attention,  and  won  the  confidence,  of 
the  youth .s 

Clio  was  indeed  very  lovely,  but  the  grave 
and  serene  dignity  of  her  address  was  far  less 
charming  to  genius  than  the  majestic  but  fanciful 
figure,  the  melodious  voice,  and  intrepid  elegance 
of  the  heroic  muse.t 

As  they  ascended  the  mountain,  Genius  felt  a 
pleasure  before  unknown.  The  hill  was  both 
steep  and  high,  but,  like  the  progress  of  fire 
towards  heaven,  the  youth,  thus  attended  and 
supported,  seemed  to  rise  without  exertion.  In 
the  niidst  of  a  scene  so  charming,  where  the 
music  of  birds,  the  murmur  of  rivulets,  andthe 
gentle  whispers  of  the  grove  filled  the  air  with 


kS    ALLEGORY.  307 

wild  and  artless  melody— no  prospect  was  ever 
more  rich,  grand  or  enchanting  The  flourishing 
verdure  of  nature,  variegated  in  hills  and  val- 
leys— rivers  seen  v/andeiing  at  a  distance,  through 
opening  vistas,  and  mountains,  whose  summits 
reached  the  clouds,  presented  before  him  some 
of  the  linest  touches  and  grandest  lines  of  Na- 
ture's pencil." 

After  ascending  far  towards  the  elevated  sum- 
mit, they  turned  aside  to  a  grotto,  which  Apollo 
had  ordered  to  be  dressed  and  decorated  for  the 
reception  and  luture  accommodation  of  Genius. 
Though  formed  by  the  hand  of  Nature,  its  inner 
recesses  excelled  even  the  proportions  of  Art. 
The  apartment  seemed  cut  out  of  a  rock  of  por- 
phyry, stratified  with  irregular  waves  of  gold  and 
azure,  resembling  the  colours  of  the  sky  and 
ocean  at  the  rising  of  the  sun.'^ 

Till  this  interesting  moment,  Genius  had  neither 
known  the  extent  of  his  own  power,  nor  the  nature 
of  his  perfections. 

On  entering  the  grotto,  he  was  surprised  to  per- 
ceive it  filled  with  a  glorious,  but  mild  lustre, 
which  always  faded  away  when  he  retired.  The 
Muses  smiled  at  his  surprise,  and  informed  him 
thai  he  derived  the  pow  er  and  privilege  of  being 
the  luminary  of  his  own  grotto,  from  his  consan- 
guinity to  the  Gods  ;  and,  moreover,  that  who- 
ever in  his  absence  should  attempt  to  enter  it 
Tvith  an  artificial  light,  would  find  it  a  perfect 
dungeon.y 

Calliope  found  it  no  easy  matter  to  repress  the 
curiosity  of  her  sisters,  till  the  moment  proper  for 
their  introduction  arrived.  Each  of  them  w^as  de- 
sirous of  gaining  a  new  admirer — a  passion  from 
which  even  immortal  bosoms  are  not  free.  They 
appeared  before  Genius  in  those  robes,  ornament?^ 


0)08  GENIUS    AND    TASTE. 

and  graces,  in  which  they  usually  attended  the 
assemblies  of  the  Gods,  in  the  chambers  of  Jove.^ 

But  Genius,,  though  conscious  of  his  high  de- 
scent, from  his  long  retirement  and  seclusion  from 
celestial  beings,  in  addition  to  his  natural  reserve, 
had  become  diffident.*^  From  their  visits,  in 
general,  he  derived  little  pleasure,  and  vi^as  rather 
dazzled  with  their  lustre,  than  captivated  with 
their  charms.  Euterpe  seemed,  to  him,  to  be 
greatly  wanting  in  dignity  of  character.  Thalia 
was  too  voluptuous  and  sensual  ;  Terpsichore  too 
vain,  airy,  and  trifling;  Erato  too  languishing 
and  effeminate  ;  Polyhymnia  too  void  of  great- 
ness and  elevation  of  sentiment ;  Urania  too 
cold,  prudish,  and  scientific  ;  Clio  too  uniform, 
serious,  and  stately  5  and  Melpomene  too  solemn 
and  mournful.  JSone  but  Calliope  possessed  those 
charms  which  rendered  the  frequency  of  her 
visits  desirable  and   interesting.^ 

Genius  soon  perceived  in  her  the  indubitable 
marks  of  sincere  and  high  attachment.  He  fan- 
cied, indeed,  that  more  was  indicated  than  the 
ardour  of  common  friendship  ;  for  it  must  be 
owned,  that  if  he  had  any  foible  it  was  vanity. 
Jn  short,  he,  at  length,  sincerely  believed  that 
the  queen  of  the  Muses  was  in  love  with  him. 
Improving,  therefore,  a  favouiable  monient  to  dis- 
close his  passion,  he  made  bold  to  offer  her  his 
band  in  marriage.  The  Goddess,  with  a  benig- 
nant smile,  assured  him,  that  unalterable  destiny 
forbad  her  uniting  herforlur.es  with  those  of  any 
one,  whether  divine  or  human.«= 

Arguments,  enforced  with  eloquence  irresistible 
as  her  charms,  compelled  his  understanding  to  as- 
sent to  her  commanding  reasons,  from  which,  how- 
ever, his  heart,  at  times,  revolted.  She  often 
assured  him  of  her  inviolable  regard,  and  that,  on  a 


AN    ALLEGORY. 


309 


more  mature  acquaintance  vviili  her  sisters,  he 
would  be  convinced  that  they  were  equally  worthy 
of  his  esteem,  and  rliat  he  would  be  entitled  to 
equal  affection  from  them  ail  But  what  she 
more  insisted  on  was,  that  the  Gods  would  pro- 
vide him  a  companion,  in  whose  friendship  and 
society  he  would  forget  all  other  attachments, 
and  experience  the  purest  felicity. 

It  is  the  privilege  of  the  offspring   of  the  Gods 
to  be  exempted  from  the  lasting  torments  of  dis- 
appointment and   despair.     Genius  bore   this  re- 
pulse with  a  fortitude  not  unworthy  of  his  name  ; 
yet  the  soft  sensations  of  melancholy  would  often 
steal  upon  his  mind,  like  a  transient  cloud  over 
a  summer  sky.     Calliope  was  then  in  her  youth, 
and  by  far  the  loveliest  of  the  Muses.     The  Ce- 
lestials often  gazed  upon  her  with  admiration,  and 
all  the  Nymphs  and  Graces  beheld  her  with  envy 
and  jealousy ,  and  the  Queen  of  Beauty  could  hardly 
be  admired  in  her  presence.     When  seen  at  a  dis- 
tance  through  the  Parnassian  bowers,  approach- 
ing the  grotto  of  Genius,    she  appeared  like  the 
morning  star  decorating  the  first  blushes  of  Aurora. 
The  days  of  Genius,  however,  now  past  on  with 
felicity.       No  conceivable    circumstance    could 
have  heightened  the   elegance  of  his  rural  habi- 
tation, or    the    refined    pleasures    of  his   amuse- 
ments.    Around  him  lay  some  of  the  finest  scenes 
in  nature  ;    below  him  flourished  a  country,  in- 
habited by  a  free  and  happy  people,  whose  towns 
and  villages  diversified  the  wide  prospect,   and 
regaled  the  eye  when  wearied  in  conteioplating 
the  wild  luxuriance  of  nature.     Not  far  above  him 
were  the  bowers  of  the  Muses,  whose  melodious 
lays,    sometimes    accompanied  by    the   harp    of 
Apollo,    were    wafted   to  his  ear  along  the  still 
breezes  of  night. 


310  GENIUS    AND    TASTE. 

In  the  mean  time  our  hero  enjoyed  continual 
accessions  of  knowledge.  Highly  endowed  with 
that  strength  of  intuition,  which  he  inherited  from 
his  paternal  stock,  he  saw  things  in  their  relations 
and  consequences.  His  eye,  with  rapture,  ex- 
plored the  starry  pages  of  Nature's  glorious  vo- 
lume, or  traced,  in  humbler  characters,  truths 
equally  legible  and  sublime.'i 

He  made  wide  excursions  through  various  coun- 
tries, provinces,  and  cities  ;  and  whenever  he  re- 
turned to  Parnassus,  the  Muses  received  and  wel- 
comed him  with  demonstrations  of  joy.  He  now 
began  to  enjoy  an  elevated  pleasure  in  the  con- 
rersation  of  Clio  and  Urania ;  and  though  the 
ardour  of  his  attachment  to  Calliope  retained  its 
strength,  yet,  from  the  more  lively  air  and  diver- 
sified strains  of  the  other  Muses  he  often  derived 
great  pleasure. 

He  learned,  in  time,  to  be  pleased,  and  even 
captivated,  with  the  mournful  airs  of  Melpomene, 
who,  often  retiring  from  the  joyful  songs  of  the  full 
chorus,  alone,  by  some  murmuring  streams,  be- 
wailed the  children  of  misfortune,  the  miseries 
of  hapless  love,  or  the  untimely  fall  of  heroes. 

The  merit  and  perfections  of  Genius  had  been 
already  represented  by  the  Muses  in  the  full 
assembly  of  the  Gods  ;  and,  to  add  to  his  happi- 
ness, he  received  a  visit  from  his  father,  by 
whom  he  was  informed,  that  by  an  irreversible 
decree  of  the  celestial  powers,  he  should  never 
die— that  even  the  destinies  had  declared  him 
immortal. 

Yet  the  cup  of  his  felicity  was  not  full. 
Though  exalted  by  nature,  acquirements,  and 
situation,  he  found  no  proper  associate  The 
chasm,  on  either  hand,  between  him  and 
Gods,  or  mortals,  seemed  too  great  to  be  passed 


AN    ALLE60RY.  311 

over.  This  consideration  would  frequently  throw 
a  shade  over  his  solitude,  and  a  transient  melan- 
choly into  his  social  hours. 

But  now  an  event  took  place  of  very  deep 
concern  to  the  future  life  and  history  of  Genius. 
He  had  but  recently  returned  from  an  excursion 
abroad,  when  he  was  surprised  by  the  approach 
of  all  the  Muses,  led  by  Apollo  himself.  In  the 
centre  of  this  splendid  groupe  was  a  young  lady 
of  graceful  form,  who  advanced  leaning  on  the 
arm  of  Clio.  Though  with  an  air  of  delicacy, 
somewhat  approaching  to  languor,  and  wanting 
the  fiery  and  florid  vigour  of  the  daughters  of  Jove, 
her  appearance  was  surpassingly  elegant  and 
beautiful.  "  The  Gods,  O  Genius,  present  you 
with  a  companion,"  said  Apollo,  "  the  resem- 
blance of  vvhose  character  to  yours  will  render 
your  union  lasting,  and  your  destinies  the  same. 
Her  name  is  TASTE.  Greece  claims  the  honour 
of  her  birth  ;  and  the  delicacy  of  her  constitution 
shows  that  her  father  was  a  mortal,  as  does  her 
perennial  beauty  and  unfading  bloom,  the  supe- 
riority of  her  maternal  stock.  But  the  names  of 
her  parents  are  unknown." 

However  delicate  and  important  the  present 
crisis  might  have  been,  the  Gods  require  no  time 
for  deliberation  ;  and  Genius,  whose  origin  was  half 
divine,  always  decides  without  delay.  As  for 
Taste,  her  love  for  Genius  was  coeval  with  their 
first  interview,  and  was  to  be  co-extensive  with 
their  duration.  Their  nuptials,  therefore,  were 
solemnized  in  the  presence  of  Apollo,  and  cele- 
brated by  the  Muses.« 

They  were  famed  in  all  the  cities  of  Greece, 
through  which,  at  times,  they  travelled  with  pomp 
and  splendour.  At  Parnassus  their  court  was 
frequented  by  persons  of  distinction,  and  was 


312  GENIUS    AND  TASTE. 

visited  by  strangers  of  note,   from  distant  coun- 
tries  and  nations/ 

Though,  in  honour  to  our  terrestrial  race,  the 
union  of  this  exalted  pair  had  borne  a  resem- 
blance to  the  marriage  bond,  yet  their  semi-ce- 
lestial origin  and  nature  raised  them  far  above  the 
habitudes  of  mortals  ;  and,  particularly,  that 
their  marriage  was  not  to  result  in  offspring,  a 
constitution  adapted  to  repair  the  waste  of  mor- 
tality. Their  connubial  felicity  was  more  re- 
fined and  noble,  and  was  a  perfect  stranger  to 
the  instinctive  desires  of  sexual  pleasure.  Their 
loves  were  pure  and  immortal  as  the  loves  of 
angels,  and  they  regarded  all  as  their  children 
whose  productions  in  art  or  science,  or  whose  pro- 
gress in  knowledge  and  virtue,  had  raised  them 
to  high  distinction,  above  the  rest  of  mankind, 
and  made  them  the  pride  and  ornament  of  their 
country.  To  every  mind  susceptible  of  their 
ethereal  inspiration,  they  felt  and  evinced  all  the 
ardour  of  parental  love  ;  and  under  the  influence 
of  this  constitution,  their  children  became  nu- 
merous, and  their  family  widely  dispersed  over 
the  hills  and  valleys  of  Greece. 

Their  influence  was  more  constant  and  imme- 
diate, more  general,  and  far  more  effectual,  than 
that  of  the  Muses.  Every  art  and  science,  every 
pursuit  and  enterprise,  of  this  whole  nation 
seemed,  for  awhile,  to  claim  their  patronage,  and 
evince  their  power  and  presence.  Under  their 
eye  rose  those  splendid  and  magnificent  temples 
and  palaces  which,  but  for  the  ravages  of  war, 
would  still  have  triumphed  over  the  waste  of 
time  and  seasons,  furnishing  to  all  nations  in- 
dubitable and  incomparable  evidences  of  their 
reign.  Their  inspiration  could  make  "  the  mar- 
We  speak,    and  the  brook   murmur   down  the 


AN    ALLEGORY.  3i3 

jiuinted  landscape."  Their  progress  was  marked 
with  beauties,  and  wherever  they  protracted  their 
stay  it  seemed  doubiful  whether  the  beauties  of  na- 
ture or  art  would  excite  most  surprise  and  admi- 
ration. 

The  face  of  affairs,  at  lerxgth,  began  to  chan^^e. 
The  din  of  arms,  the  rage  of  civil  war,  and  the 
prevalence  of  despotic  power,  in  that  once  happy 
country,  presented  before  G'cnius  objects  the 
most  repulsive,  and  scenes  unspeakably  dis- 
gusting. He  grew  discontented  and  melancholy, 
and,  at  length,  began  to  retire  from  public  view.K 
He  withdrew  to  his  favourite  grotto.  <ind  deter- 
mined for  ever  to  abandon  an  ungrateful  people, 
who  had  been  indebted  to  him  for  their  chief 
happiness  and  glory. 

But  in  the  bosom  of  retirement,  where  he  con- 
versed only  with  the  Muses,  the  shafts  of  adversity 
were  still  able  to  reach  him,  and  wound  his  sensi- 
bility. It  began  to  be  rumoured  that  Taste,  his 
lovely  consort,  whom  he  could  by  no  arguments 
persuade  to  retire  with  him  from  public  life,  was 
engaged  in  an  amour  with  Fashion,  and  availed  her- 
self of  the  absence  of  her  husband  to  appear  pub- 
licly with  him  on  all  occasions.  For  awhile  he  re- 
garded this  but  as  a  calumny  forged  by  his  ene- 
mies, but  too  soon  he  was  confirmed  in  his  sus- 
picions by  the  testimony  of  several  of  the 
Muses.h 

Fashion  was,  of  all  fops  the  most  egregious, 
of  all  coxcombs  the  most  conceited,  and  of  all 
fools  the  most  profound.  His  prime  ministers 
were  Vanity  and  Vice.  The  chief  personages 
of  his  court  and  palace  were  Stupidity,  Pride, 
Flattery,  Deceit,  and  Servility.  Taste,  when 
first  introduced  to  this  new  circle,  could  not 
forbear  drawing  comparisons  to  their  expense. 
27 


314  GENIUS    AND    TASTE. 

But  the  splendour  of  Fashion,  the  fascinating  ad- 
dress of  Flattery,  the  lofty  manners  of  Pride, 
and  the  artless  ease  of  Stupidity,  daily  won  upon 
her  confidence,  subdued  her  aversion,  and  at  last 
wore  away  her  prejudices  ;  and  she,  for  awhile, 
became  unmindful  of  her  noble  and  generous  part- 
ner, who  languished  in  oblivion. 

The  historian  must,  however,  confess,  that 
this  perversion  and  revolt  of  Taste  was  rather 
an  error  of  her  understanding  than  her  heart, 
where  no  sentiment  derogatory  to  the  purest  rules 
of  virtue  ever  found  a  moment's  residence.  But 
endowed  by  nature  with  the  most  delicate  sensi- 
bility, and  formed  to  shine  and  please  in  the  most 
splendid  circles  of  life,  she  had  incautiously  mis- 
placed her  confidence  in  those  whom  she  con- 
sidered as  the  inseparable  friends  of  Genius,  her 
true  and  only  lord,  being  led  too  far  by  the  false 
and  insidious  pomp  of  external  pageantry. 

She  was  soon  made  sensible  of  her  error.  To 
her  unutterable  surprise,  she  was  informed,  that 
Genius  had  forsaken  Parnassus,  and  it  was  not 
known  whither  he  was  gone.  Overwhelmed  with 
grief,  and  in  the  utmost  consternation,  she  repair- 
ed to  his  wonted  bower:  no  vestige  of  its  former 
beauty  was  left — silence  and  solitude  reigned 
there.  The  lamp  was  extinguished,  the  lovely 
train  of  attendants  were  no  longer  seen,  and  the 
various  ornaments  of  the  grotto  destroyed. 

So  altered,  indeed,  was  the  place,  that  she.  ne- 
ver would  have  discovered  its  true  situation,  had 
it  not  been  for  a  marble  column,  of  massy  size,  on 
which  were  inscribed  the  names  of  Homer,  Solon, 
Themistocles,  and  Phidias,  which  stood  at  the 
entrance  of  the  grotto. 

Near  that  former  seat  of  all  her  youthful  plea- 
sures she  saw  the  plaintive  Melpomene,  who, 
with  mournful  accents,  confirmed    all  her  fears. 


AX    ALLEGORY-  315 

by  assurances  that  Genius  was  no  longer  to  be 
found  in  Greece.  No  mourner  was  ever  more 
sincere  ;  but  she  saw  her  error  too  late.  Like 
many  other  ladies,  she  had  too  incautiously  listen- 
ed to  the  voice  of  adulation,  and  had  been  too 
sensible  to  the  allurements  of  Fashion. 

Nothing  could  exceed  the  grief  and  regret  of 
Taste,  when  she  perceived  herself  abandoned  by 
Genius,  whom  she  so  fervently  adored.  Instead, 
however,  of  giving  herself  over  to  despair,  she 
summoned  fortitude  to  her  aid,  and  endured  her 
affliction  with  heroic  virtue.  Her  perfect  know- 
ledge of  the  character  of  Genius  induced  her  to 
believe,  that  either  pitying  her  frailty,  or  con- 
vinced of  her  innocence,  he  would  not  fail  to 
communicate  to  her  the  place  of  his  abode,  and 
invite  her,  once  more,  to  be  his  companion,  in  some 
country  where  he  might  find  a  habitation. 

In  this  hope  she  had  an  unwavering  confidence, 
from  the  consideration  that,  though  Genius  was 
possessed  of  superior  powers,  yet  his  alliance  and 
cooperation  with  Taste,  was  productive  of  eflfects 
no  less  conducive  to  his  own  personal  happiness 
than  his  extended  and  permanent  reputation. 
.  Her  expectations  and  hopes  were  soon  realized. 
Genius,  upon  a  little  reflection,  perceived  that 
Taste  had  no  power  to  resist  the  tyranny  or  fluc- 
tuation of  Fashion,  or  to  correct  the  endless  ab- 
surdities of  his  court  ;  and  that  her  excellencies 
could  only  appear  when  exerted  under  the  direc 
tion  of  his  eye  ;  and  that  even  his  own  lustre  could 
appear  to  best  advantage  when  aided  by  her  deli- 
cate hand.  Taste  was,  at  length,  agreeably  surpris- 
ed by  a  cordial  invitation,  under  his  own  signature, 
soliciting  her  to  come  and  rejoin  him  at  Rome. 
With  this  invitation  she  readily  complied,  no  less 
from  the  love  she  bore  to  her  illustrious  and  long- 


516  OENIUS    AND    TASTE. 

lost  partner,  than  from  bcr  disgust  and  indignitj  at 
the  Greeks,  who,  by  insensible  degrees,  withdrew 
from  her  all  confidence,  insulted  her  in  all  public 
places,  expelled  her  from  their  assemblies,  and 
she  had  the  mortiticalion  to  see  herself  neglected 
and  abandoned,  even  at  the  court  of  Fashion.' 

Nothing  could  excel  the  magnificence  of  her 
reception  at  Rome;  and  her  meeting  with  Genius 
was  marked  with  #\ery  possible  testimony  of 
joy  and  affection.  Thtiir  union  was  now  more 
perfect  than  ever,  being  proved  by  experience, 
endeared  by  absence,  and  rendered  wise  by 
adversity.  Yet  Taste,  from  her  natural  temper 
and  constitution,  was  more  fond  of  society, 
Genius  more  attaciied  to  retirement.  This  cir- 
cum.stance,  instead  of  exciting  uneasiness,  or 
awaking  former  jealousies,  was  a  source  of  mutual 
pleasure,  as  it  led  to  a  happy  combination  of 
artificial  elegance,   and  native  simplicity. 

In  this  new  region  they  enjoyed  m.any  days  of 
prosperitj^,  and  the  remembrance  of  their  former 
misfortunes  was- obi  iterated.  The  flow  of  dura- 
tion, though  it  does  not  impair  the  faculties  of 
immortals,  yet  may  introduce  gradual  changes  in 
their  characters,  pursuits,  and  enjoyments.  Ge- 
nius, from  increase  of  years,  and  the  vicissitudes 
of  fortune,  had  acquired  a  graver  air  and  turn  of 
thought,  and  a  certain  majesty,  correspondent  to 
the  greatness  and  extent  of  the  lloman  empire. 
Taste,  no  less  delicate  than  in  the  bloom  of 
youth,  and  as  beautiful  as  on  her  wedding  day^ 
pursued  a  course  of  conduct  more  amiably  cor- 
rect, in  every  part  of  which  a  soi't  and  plaintive 
sweetjjess  was  transfused,  more  charming  to  the 
eye  of  Genius,  and  more  fascinating  to  the  heurt 
of  iSensibility,  than  the  gravity  of  widom,  the 
briJJiancy  of  wit,  or  the  pomp  of  erudition."^' 


NOTES. 


(a)  Egypt  is  justly  styled  the  cradle  of  science* 
There  g-enius  bejjan  his  career. 

(b)  Mercury  was  the  inveotor  of  letters,  and  tlie 
God  of  eloquence,  poetry,   music,  &c. 

(c)  It  has  been  remarked,  perhaps,  however,  with 
more  humour  than  depth,  that  nature  makes  up  the 
want  of  primogenitTire  to  young-er  children,  by  more 
liberal  endowments  of  an  in'tellectual  nature.  Eve- 
ry one  knows  the  import  of  the  phrase  "an  elder 
brother." 

(d)  The  native  gravity  of  tlie  Eg-yptian  character 
prepared  the  way  for  that  deep  and  g-loomy  supersti- 
tion which  g-ave  a  sickly  cast  to  their  national  insti- 
tutions, and  ting-ed  the  v/liole  stream  of  ancient 
literature  which  ^owed  from  Ihem. 

(e)  Science  and  genius  could  not  fmd  a  lasting 
residence  in  the  torrid  climes  of  Africa.  Carthage 
was  the  only  free  state,  and  Egypt  and  Carthage  the 
only  powerful  and  civilized  nations  ever  known  in 
Africa. 

"The  parent  sun  him?elf 
Seems  o'ertLat  world  of  .«la\es  to  tyiannize." 

(f)  True  genius  never  appears  in  a  mean  and  servile, 
much  less  in  a  borrowed,  dress.  Indeed,  the  real 
habiliments  of  genius  undergo  little  variation.  In  ail 
agey  they  are  illustrious,  beautiful,  grand. 

(t)  Such  ought  to  be  the  education  of  every  scholar. 
Probably  the  most  radical  fault  in  the  plan  of  modena 
cdiiciviioti  is  its  extreme  effeminacy. 


-318  IV'OTES. 

(Ij)  Dnt  alas  !  modern  forests  arc  wonderfully  stefils 
of  g-a.iie,  unless  it  be  of  uacleau  beasts,  not  fit  for  the 
table, 

(i)  The  pleasures  of  tlie  mind,  which  result  from  a 
combination  of  science  and  genius,  seem  to  form  the 
proper  amusement  of  an  immortal  intelligence. 

(k)  Genius  disnlayed  but  its  first  rudiments  ia 
Egypt.  Ti)e  rude  proportions  and  enormous  size  ol* 
their  pyramids^  obelisks,  sphynxes,  and  labyrinths, 
sbov/ed  greatness,  but  iso  taste,  elegance,  or  beauty. 
Though  Alexander's  successors,  the  dynasty  of  the 
Ptolemies,  restored  learning  to  Egypt,  yet  their 
genius  led  theni  rather  to  exploi-e  the  dark  regions 
of  occult  science,  tiian  useful,  knowledge,  or  elegant 
improi^ement. 

(1)  The  siiblimity  of  the  sacred  writings  stands 
unrivalled. 

(m)  Assyria  and  Persia  have  done  little  in  thecatise 
of  literature.  Aud  what  they  did  was  in  very  an- 
cient ages.  The  Arabians  of  the  middle  ages  have 
been  respectable  in  literature. 

(n)  The  IndianBrahmins,  however,  pretend  to  more 
knowledge  than  all  the  world  beside.  They  believe 
that  Brurmna,  their  founder,  vvho  was  inferior  only  to 
God  Almighty,  lived  some  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
years  ago.  But  their  learning  is  of  too  sacred  a 
nature  ever  to  be  made  known.  It  is  all  locked  up  ia 
the  sacred  Shansciit  character,  which  they  only  under- 
istand. 

(o}  It  is  thought  that  the  Chinese  know  nothing  of 
the  beautiful  or  sublime  in  writing.  They  must,  of 
course,  be  strangers  to  poetry  and  eloquence;  and,  I 
think,  to  most  of  the  pleasuies  of  the  imagination. 
They  rely  wholly  on  their  own  experience,  and  hold 
in  contempt  and  abhorrence  all  the  improvements  of 
other  nations.  The  fashion  of  the  dress  of  all  classes 
is  regulated  by  law,  and  descends,  unaltered,  from  age 
to  age.  This  single  circumstance  must  operate  upon 
the  refined  and  elegant  taste  of  the  ladies,  like  an 
embargo  upon  commerce-^inustdestroy  it. 

(p)  The  internal  policy  of  China  may  be  nearly  all 
comprehena'fd   in  one  ,word — subordination.      Ail 
their  institutions,  whether  civii,  inilirary,  mui'icipal.  oK 
moral,  :ook  towards  this  u^  their  uliu;ir:tt3  obier- 


NOTES.  3i& 

(q)  Asia,  though  the  nohlest  portion  of  the  g-lobe, 
and  embracing  every  advantage  of  soil  and  climate ; 
though  society  there  began  its  race,  and  was  there 
restored  from  the  desolations  of  the  deluge,  and  the 
ruins  of  the  fall,  yet  was  never  enlightened  by  the 
cheering  beams  of  civil  liberty.  The  night  of  despot- 
ism seems  there  destined  for  ever  to  brood  over  a 
still  gloomier  night  of  moral  darkness. 

(r)  The  meeting  of  Genius  with  the  Muses  will  he 
considered  as  referring  to  the  commencement  of 
elegant  Grecian  literature  ;  and  as  it  is  allowed  that 
poetic  composition  preceded  prose,  and  as  Homer's 
writings  were  not  only  the  morning,  but  the  mid-day 
of  Grecian  poetry,  1  trust  no  one  will  question  the 
propriety  of  introducing  Genius  first  to  Calliope  and 
Clio,  the  epic  and  historic  Muses. 

(s)  The  epic  is  the  most  majestic  and  important 
kind  of  poetr}',  and  forms  the  most  fascinating-  object 
to  a  truly  great  genius.  Perhaps,  indeed,  Homer's 
Iliad  may  be  considered  as  the  first  corner  stone  of 
elegant  literature,  and  even  of  important  science. 
From  that  inimitable  production  may  be  drawn  a  true 
picture  of  ancient  manners'.  It  is  a  fountain  whence 
the  geographer,  the  historian,  the  statesman,  and  hero, 
may  draw  useful  instructions.  And,  indeed,  when  the 
christian  reads  there  of  the  reverence  the  heathens 
paid  to  their  gods,  he  may  well  blush  for  his  own 
practical  atheism. 

(t)As  poetry  has  more  attractions  for  genius  in 
the  ruder  state  of  nations,  so  history  may  be  regarded 
among  the  last  literary  accomplishments  of  a  nation. 
A  perfect  historic  style  is  one  of  the  most  arduous 
and  ditficult  of  all  literary  accomplishments,  and  there 
have  been  as  few  elegant  historians  as  great  poets. 
A  thousand  persons  may  write  a  narrative,  among 
nvhom  one  shall  not  be  found  who  writes  with 
simplicity,  dignity,  elegance,  and  ease. 

(u)  It  is  impossible  to  develop  the  extensive  com- 
binaiiou  of  causes  of  the  extreme  difference  in  the 
genius  of  nations.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that 
their  geographical  situation  is  among  those  causes. 
The  abundance  and  purity  of  the  springs  and  rivulets 
of  Greece,  the  boldncsss    and  variety  of  their  hills 


320 


NOTES. 


and  mountains,  the  picturesque  and  grand  prospects  of 
their  country,  and  the  serenity  ofiheir  seasons,  gave 
health  and  vig-our  to  the  bocly  and  mind. 

(x)  True  g-enius  ever  relies  on  its  own  native 
energy:  its  resources  are  in  itself,  and  without  art, 
it  easily  surpasses  the  utmost  elforts  of  art. 

(y)  Great  natural  genius  clothes  the  mind  with  a 
lustre  which  no  art,  no  industry  can  acquire.. 

^z)  The  Grecian  genius  was^  honoured  by  all  the 
muses.  They  excelled  as  much  in  pastoral  as  in 
heroic  poetry.  Since  the  days  of  Theocritus,  no  poet 
ever  drew  such  inimitable,  such,  fascinating  pictures 
of  nature.  In  the  drama,  who  ever  surpassed  Sopho- 
cles and  Euripides?  In  history,  Herodotus,  Thucy- 
dides,  and  Xenophon,  still  reign.  In  philosophj-, 
Socrates,  Plato,  and  Aristotle,  if  we  consider  the  dis- 
advantage under  which  they  laboured,  have  never 
been  rivalled.  Thales  and  JPythagoras  explored  the 
true  system  of  astronomy.  Piiidias,  Apelles,  and 
Praxitiles,  in  statuary,  painting,  and  architecture, 
were  never  equalled.  Their  catalogue  of  heroes  was 
completed  by  Alexander,  and  of  orators  by  the  incom- 
parable Demosthenes.  The  iVTuses,  when  they  appear- 
ed before  the  Genius  of  the  Greeks  seem  to  have  put 
on  all  their  best  robes  and  brightest  ornaments. 

(a)  Great  genius  is  said  1o  be  diffident  and  modest; 
which  probably  proceeds  from  a  delicate  sensibility. 
Stupidity  generally  settles  all  the  muscles  of  the  face 
into  a  kind  of  torpid  apatli},  which  no  common  shock 
can  ruffle  or  disturb. 

(b)  The  lioroic  muse  smiles  only  on  genius  of  the 
utmost  magnitude  and  lustre.  Homer,  Virgil,  and 
Milton,  have  been  almost  her  only  favourites  among 
men.  There  is,  iudped,  another  heroic  poet  who 
seems  to  have  been  but  little  noticed.  Ossian  yields 
not  to  Homer  in  strength,  boldness,  and  fire,  nor  to 
Virgil  in  delicacy  of  conception.  In  point  of  richnesi 
and  variety  of  matter,  however,  they  far  excel  him. 

(c)  The  rauses  wed  only  by  iheir  inspiration. 

(d)  The  progress  of  the  Grecian  sages  and  philoso- 
phers in  truth  and  inorabty  cannot  be  observed  with- 
out emotion"  of  delight  and  admiration.  They  re- 
g-arded  the   religion  of  Jupiter,  Juno,  &c.,  and  the 


NOTES.  321 

heathen  inytholog-y,  with  as  much  contempt  as  we  do, 
and  were  as  sensible  of  its  absurdity.  The}'  believed 
in  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  the  eternity  and 
spirituality  of  God,  and  the  great  principles  of  moral 
and  civil  justice.  Indeed,  it  is  somewhat  surprising-  to 
observe  how  few  truly  origmal  ideas  on  those  sub- 
jects are  found  in  Puffendorf,  Montesquieu,  and  even 
Paley.  Paley's  notion  of  moral  virtue  is,  ia  fact, 
little  ia  advance  of  those  entertained  2,000  years 
ag-o. 

(e)  The  union  of  Genius  and  Taste  will  be  consi- 
dered as  referring-  to  that  period  of  Grecian  history  in 
which  all  the  aris  and  sciences  were  in  the  big-best 
state  of  prosperity  and  perfection;  a  time  soiiicfbing- 
difficult  to  ascertain.  Their  greatest  poet  must  rave 
lived  before  that  period,  and  their  greatest  orator 
after  it. 

(f)  It  is  DO  easy  matter  to  form  an  adequate  idea 
of  the  splendour  and  majesty  of  the  Grecian  genius, 
or  of  the  glor;,'  that  nation  derived  from  their  elegant 
literature.  Cicero  remarks,  that  an  Athenian  mecha- 
nic, or  labourer,  was  master  of  greater  eloquence  than 
the  literati  of  other  nations. 

(^•)  The  ambition  of  demagogues,  and  the  folly  of 
the  ignorant  populacc^  has  ruined  all  republics.  The 
Peloponnesian  war  laid  the  foundation  for  the  ruin  of 
Greece,  although  genius  and  taste  flourished  there  at 
a  later  period. 

(h)  The  decline  of  taste  is  visible  in  the  literary  pro- 
ductions of  a  nation,  r.or  less  is  the  retreat  and  seclu- 
sion of  genius.  The  question  may,  perhaps,  be  agita- 
ted by  the  critics  of  future  ages,  whether,  at  the  pre- 
sent time,  English  literature  shows  any  indication  of 
t!ie  retirement  of  Genius,  or  of  any  marked  civiliiit's 
between  Taste  and  Fashion.  I  hope  they  will  not  suf- 
fer Calliope  to  sit  in  judgment  on  this  question.  I  al- 
so hope,  that  no  one,  at  thai  time,  will  happou  to  re- 
member, that  our  critics  and  reviewers  preferred 
Southey  to  Scott,  which  savours  a  little  of  my  Lord 
Fashion. 

(i)  Mr.  Addison  remarks,  that  fashion  governs  all 
things,  even  to  the  features  of  tlie  face  ;  tl.at  certain 
lineaments  grow  antiquated,  and  are  laid  aside  as  eld 


322  NOTES. 

fashioned.  Hence  statesmen  are  observed  to  look 
profound,  clerg-ymen  reverend,  lawyers  cunning,  phy- 
sicians mysterious,  and  commercial  men  keen.  But 
fashion  never  bungles  so  much  as  with  true  taste  and 
criticism,  which  depend  on  immutable  rules.  If  fash- 
ion interfere  with  language,  grammar  and  etymology 
vanish;  if  with  the  fine  arts,  genius  and  taste  take 
their  flight ;  if  with  music,  the  ear  of  sensibility  sick- 
ens at  the  sound. 

But  it  is  said  that  taste  varies,  and  even  sometimes 
vrithout  deterioration.  It  is  scarcely  to  be  doubted, 
that,  in  every  species  of  excellence  there  is  a  stand- 
ard ;  nor  do  the  various  and  contradictory  tastes  of 
different  nations,  concerning  the  beauty  of  the  human 
countenance,  prove  to  the  contrary,  but  rather  evince 
the  corrupting  influence  of  my  Lord  Fashion.  The 
Roman  admiration  of  little  foreheads,  as  a  striking 
part  of  female  beauty,  or  the  Chinese  delight  in  little 
feet,  even  too  little  to  admit  of  firm  and  graceful  move- 
ment, adds  nothing  to  the  argument  thai  there  is  no 
standard  of  beauty.  The  ignorance  of  the  Chinese, 
and,  indeed,  of  all  the  Asiatic  nations,  of  the  counter- 
point in  musig,  their  abhorrence  of  the  simultaneous 
movement  of  several  parts  together,  as  mere  Gothic 
jargon,  which  amounts  to  the  exclusion  of  harmony,  is 
no  proof  that  a  standard  of  excellence  in  music  is  not, 
in  a  measure,  attainable.  There  may  be  a  series  of 
sounds,  which  would  reach  the  maximum  of  melody ; 
and  a  simultaneous  combination,  the  maximum  of 
concord  or  harmony  ;  though  it  is  probable  such  a 
series,  and  such  a  combination,  were,  as  yet,  never 
discovered.  Though  it  must  be  admitted,  that,  since 
in  the  series  of  sounds  necessary  even  to  perfect  melo- 
dy, the  nature,  the  quantit}',  the  quality,  and  duration 
of  every  distinct  sound,  in  relation  to  every  other  one 
in  the  series,  must  be  duly  regulated  or  chosen,  and  in 
all  these  respects  b}^  trial  only,  it  would  lie  beyond  the 
reach  of  finite  skill  to  discover  them. 

The  variety  and  discrepancy  of  tastes  may  be  as 
forcibly  urged  to  prove  :he  depravation  of  taste,  as 
that  there  is  no  standard  of  beauty.  And  it  cannot  be 
denied,  that  there  may  be  a  combination  of  figure. 


NOTES.  323 

colour,  and  expression,  which  would  constitute  perfect 
beauty  :  and,  if  taste  be  truly  defined  "  a  power  to  re- 
ceive pleasure  from  the  objects  of  nature,"  a  mind  pos- 
sessed of  that  "  power,"  in  its  highest  perfection, 
would  acknowledg-e  the  perfection  and  supremacy  of 
that  beauty,  as  soon  as  perceived. 

(k)  The  very  great  difference  in  the  genius,  taste, 
and  character  of  the  two  greatest  and  most  polished 
nations  of  antiquity,  forms  a  curious  and  interesting 
subject  of  speculation.  The  Greeks  were  lively,  vo- 
latile, inquisitive,  and  humorous  ;  the  Romans  stern, 
grave,  thoughtful,  and  commanding.  But  when  the 
Romans  imbibed  the  spirit  of  Grecian  literature,  and 
became  a  scientific  people,  a  new  and  most  happy 
combination  was  formed.  The  Grecian  vivacity  was 
tempered  with  dignity,  and  the  Roman  acerbity  soften- 
ed into  mildness.  And  whatever  may,  or  can  be 
said,  of  the  genius  of  the  Greeks,  yet  no  reader  of  sen- 
sibility ever  read  Virgil's  iEneid  without  greater  plea- 
sure than  he  felt  in  reading  Homer's  Iliad.  The  same 
■will  be  the  result  of  a  comparison  between  the  Gre- 
cian and  the  Roman  orator. 

But  this  concession,  if  such  it  may  be  called,  in  fa- 
%'our  of  the  Roman  genius,  is  more  than  compensated 
in  other  arts  and  sciences.  Even  with  the  advantage 
of  Grecian  models  and  artists,  such  as  they  were,  the 
Romans  could  never  reach  the  excellence  of  Grecian 
statuary  and  architecture.  The  edifices  which  form- 
ed the  magnificence  of  the  Roman  capitol,  and  consti- 
tuted the  splendour  of  that  imperial  city,  though  such 
as  Avould  certainly  tlirow  all  modern  cities  into  the 
shade,  if  not  sink  them  almost  into  insignificance ; 
though  they  derived  an  awful  grandeur  from  their  size 
and  numbers,  and  evinced  great  excellence  in  their 
materials  and  workmanship,  yet,  could  the  same  eye 
have  had  the  advantage  of  viewing  the  Roman  capitol 
and  the  Athenian  Acropolis,  each  in  the  zenith  of  their 
glory,  the  former  would  have  suffered  a  total  eclipse 
in  the  comparison.  The  hill  of  Athens,  crowned  with 
the  Parthenon,  and  covered  with  lofty  structures  of 
Pentelic  marble  ;  their  snowy  whiteness,  their  unpa- 
ralleled grace  and  proportions,  their  vast  extent,  con- 
cealed and  overlooked  in  the  svmmetrv  of  their  forms, 


324 


NOTES. 


and  unity  of  their  parts;  and  these,  again,  obscured  by 
the  ineffable  magnificence ,  and  exquisite  ornaments 
which  met  the  eye  at  every  step,  and  presented  new 
beauties  at  every  turn  ;  the  chasteness  and  simphcity 
of  their  style,  the  brightness  of  their  pohsh,  the  bold- 
ness of  their  elevation,  and  grandeur  of  their  plan, 
gave,«ri^TTc&^^  b'6fh~drgenitis'~and  taste  superior  to  all 
iia*fon^,and  of  which  lli^  liuman  )%Qe  could  now  form 
m)  concepitioii,  bu|  far  ll^^i^ogijme^ts  of  their  great- 
|iess  tvhich  still  remain. "  Ftiit  J^um.''* 


IJBRAM.Y. 


N.YORK 


Mi-ii 


i^'mmir^. 


0068098308 


PHOTOCOPy/^ 


